The Secretary of the Navy (Semar) reported this Monday the seizure of approximately 4.4 tons of suspected cocaine in different operations carried out in the waters of the Pacific Ocean, in addition to the arrest of 16 alleged suspects and the dismantling of a clandestine laboratory used for the production of methamphetamine in the state of Sinaloa.
The actions are part of the National Security Strategy and were developed by elements of the Mexican Navy in Coast Guard functions, in coordination with the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection (SSPC) and the Attorney General's Office (FGR).
According to official information, the largest seizure occurred off the coast of Oaxaca, where naval personnel detected two smaller vessels that were sailing in a manner considered suspicious during maritime surveillance patrols.
After carrying out an inspection, the officers located 127 packages and 42 partitions with alleged cocaine, whose preliminary weight amounts to about three tons. In the same operation, six outboard motors were also seized and 10 people were detained, who were placed at the disposal of the Federal Public Ministry.
In a second intervention, carried out off the coast of Chiapas, elements of the Navy intercepted two other smaller vessels. One of them was transporting 24 packages with approximately 1,423 kilograms of alleged cocaine, in addition to more than 2,000 liters of fuel. Six other people were arrested in this operation.
Operations also reach Nayarit and Sinaloa
In addition to the maritime seizures, the Secretary of the Navy reported other operations in national territory as part of the actions against organizations dedicated to drug trafficking.
In the municipality of Bahía de Banderas, Nayarit, naval elements were carrying out surveillance tours when, according to the official report, they were attacked with gunshots in the community of Aguamilpa.
The troops responded to the attack. As a result of the confrontation, a member of the Navy was injured and an alleged attacker died at the scene. The authorities also seized a firearm, magazines and cartridges. Meanwhile, in the town of Península de Villamoros, in Culiacán, Sinaloa, naval personnel located and destroyed a clandestine laboratory where approximately 300 liters of chemicals used to produce methamphetamine were found.
Authorities highlight impact against drug trafficking networks
The head of the SSPC, Omar García Harfuch, pointed out that these operations prevented “millions of doses from reaching the streets” and assured that they represent a significant blow against the operational and financial capacity of criminal groups. The authorities specified that the final ministerial weight of the seized drugs is still pending to be determined through the corresponding expert reports, so the official figure will later be incorporated into the seizure statistics of the Ministry of the Navy.
The 16 detainees were informed of their rights and placed at the disposal of the Federal Public Ministry, an authority that will determine their legal situation as the investigation progresses. The seizures occur in the midst of strengthening operations against maritime drug trafficking in the Mexican Pacific, a route that, according to official information, currently concentrates an important part of the movement of cocaine to North America.
According to data from the Government of Mexico, during the current administration the Navy has seized more than 80 tons of cocaine on the high seas, in a context of bilateral cooperation and growing pressure from the United States to intensify the fight against drug trafficking and reduce the flow of drugs into United States territory.
