Colombian Armed Forces
Seize Another Drug
Trafficking Submarine
Colombia's armed forces
seized one of the
largest submarines
designed for drug
trafficking through the
Pacific to Central
America, Navy officials
said Friday.
Colombia has captured 11
homemade submarines for
drug smuggling since
2005.
This latest fiberglass
vessel, whose
construction was nearing
completion, was seized
in Tumaco, a rural area
in the southern province
of Narino bordering
Ecuador. It had space
for four crewmembers and
was capable of carrying
12 tons of illicit
drugs.
Colombia's Pacific coast
has become a key route
for drug traffickers
seeking to enter sea
lanes north to Mexico
and the United States.
There have been
occasional reports of
fighting over Pacific
Ocean drug routes among
guerrillas,
paramilitaries and
traffickers.
Meanwhile, rudimentary
submarines and
submersible containers
dragged behind container
ships are being
developed into a major
means of shipment by
traffickers.
Colombia is the world's
No. 1 cocaine producer,
with an output of some
6,000 tons a year. The
country is a major
recipient of U.S. aid to
fight traffickers and
guerrillas.
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