U.S. Military Intercepts Vessel Linked to Drug Trafficking
The U.S. military recently intercepted a vessel believed to be serving as a refueling point for drug-smuggling boats in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
According to a statement from U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), the operation was conducted in collaboration with the Ecuadorian government and the Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere (JTF-WHEM), who worked together to board the ship.
“Intelligence indicated that this vessel was previously identified and targeted under Department of the Treasury sanctions and was supporting the Los Choneros violent narco-terrorist group,” SOUTHCOM reported.
Los Choneros, based in Manabí Province, Ecuador, is notorious for its involvement in drug trafficking, extortion, and robbery, and stands as one of Ecuador’s most powerful organized crime factions.
U.S. Marines and Sailors were deployed from the USS San Antonio, an amphibious transport dock, and they boarded, searched, and cleared the vessel efficiently and without incident. After securing the area, U.S. forces sank the ship once everyone aboard had been evacuated.
Those removed from the vessel were escorted back to Ecuador.
This operation, according to the military, effectively dismantles a vital aspect of the traffickers’ logistics network, aiding the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition (A3C) in combating narco-terrorism.
“This operation highlights the Coalition’s capability to disrupt the sophisticated and secretive tactics of narco-terrorists that facilitate the trafficking of harmful drugs into American communities,” stated General Francis L. Donovan, SOUTHCOM Commander responsible for the operation. “Together with Ecuador and our other regional partners, we are dedicated to defeating narco-terrorists in the Western Hemisphere.”
SOUTHCOM’s announcement followed a recent strike on a suspected drug-trafficking boat that resulted in the death of two alleged narco-terrorists in the same region.
“To be clear, we will not allow narco-terrorists to operate freely in the Western Hemisphere, nor will we let their deadly drugs infiltrate American communities,” Donovan emphasized.
