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Patrulleras de guardacostas junto a una embarcación artesanal de pesca en el océano Pacífico al amanecer, vistas desde lejos
Imagen alusiva generada por Erick Prometeo Media: patrulleras de guardacostas y una embarcación artesanal en el Pacífico al amanecer. · Erick Prometeo Media

Navy seizes 1.2 tons of cocaine hidden among fish in the Colombian Pacific

Colombia's Navy seized 1.2 tons of cocaine hidden among fish aboard a vessel in the Pacific, capturing three crew members, a day after another seizure of 568…

--- The context --- The routes of the Colombian Pacific are used by drug trafficking organizations to move shipments toward illegal markets. There, the Colombian Navy maintains control operations with support from the United States Southern Command's Joint Interagency Task Force, Jiatfs, dedicated to detecting suspicious vessels. --- The facts --- The operation was reported on October 26, 2026. Coast Guard units intercepted, west of the department of Chocó, an artisanal wind and tide type vessel carrying a load of fish. During the initial inspection, officers detected rectangular packages hidden in an ice chest, among the fish. According to the institution, the distribution of 3.1 million doses in illegal markets was prevented and three Colombian citizens were captured. The vessel was taken to the Buenaventura Coast Guard Station, in Valle del Cauca, where proceedings were coordinated with the Technical Investigation Corps of the Attorney General's Office. The Approved Preliminary Homologated Identification Test confirmed cocaine hydrochloride: 42 bundles with 1,250 rectangular packages and a total weight of 1,250 kilograms, that is, 1.2 tons. Authorities also seized two outboard motors, 90 gallons of fuel, navigation equipment, communication devices and the vessel itself. According to the Navy, the seizure prevented close to USD 58 million from reaching drug trafficking organizations. The three crew members were placed at the disposal of the competent authorities. A day earlier, another operation became known near the Dominican Republic: 568 kilograms of cocaine in a fast go fast boat, intercepted 102 nautical miles south of Beata Island after a pursuit at sea. The boat had departed from La Guajira bound for Dominican territory. There were 555 rectangular packages hidden in sacks, and the preliminary test confirmed cocaine hydrochloride. Three Dominican citizens, aged 24, 34 and 45, were detained. The institution estimated more than USD26 million and more than 1.4 million doses. --- The positions --- Corvette Captain Daniel Gutiérrez, commander of the Buenaventura Coast Guard Station, pointed out that the operation hit the logistics of maritime trafficking networks and that the Navy will keep controls with national and international authorities. The Colombian Navy, the Colombian Air Force, the Dominican Republic Navy and Jiatfs took part in the operation near the Dominican Republic. --- What remains unknown --- The Attorney General's Office must establish the origin of the Pacific shipment, the planned route and those responsible for the operation. For the Dominican boat, which group was behind the transfer and whether the detainees had judicial records were not reported. --- Unanswered questions --- What route was the vessel intercepted west of Chocó following, and what was the shipment's final destination? What organization was behind each of the two transfers seized? What will the justice system decide regarding the detainees from both operations? --- EPM analysis --- Both operations share a pattern: camouflage in vessels with a fishing appearance or in fast boats, routes across the Pacific and the Caribbean, and cooperation among Colombia, the Dominican Republic and the United States. Hiding the load among fish and ice seeks to evade routine controls; detecting it depended on direct Coast Guard inspection. 📌 EPM Take: In EPM's view, the value of these seizures is measured on two levels: the shipment removed from circulation and the logistical cost imposed on the networks that moved it, which in a single operation lose the vessel, the motors, the fuel and the complete load. But the blow remains partial as long as the origin, the planned route and those responsible that the Attorney General's Office must establish remain unknown, because organizations replace boats and crews more easily than the routes and the structures that finance each transfer.
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