Watch: Colombian Navy captures submarine carrying 800 kg of cocaine

Colombia on Saturday (Jan 20) intercepted the first narco-submarine of the year 2024 off the country’s Pacific Coast. The Columbian Navy said Monday that the submarine was destined for Europe and US. The 15-metre homemade submarine was carrying almost 800 kgof cocaine in small packages the size of bricks. The packages were embossed with signs of scorpions and Mexican flags.

Navy spokesman Capt. Wilmer Roa later said it was a smaller seize in comparison to what they have captured in 2023. “In reality, this was a small" seizure, Roa said. “We’ve caught submarines with almost 3,500 kilos” of the drug, he added. He also mentioned that the Colombian Navy had captured at least 10 such narco-submarines in 2023.

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Cocaine boom in Colombia

Over the past few years, the Colombian government has faced significant hurdles in its efforts to control cocaine production. This struggle is intensified as rebel groups and drug trafficking gangs exploit territories that were vacated by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia guerrillas following their peace deal with the government in 2016.

Alarming statistics from the UN's Office for Drug and Crime highlight the severity of the situation. In 2022, the area cultivated with coca bushes in Colombia reached an unprecedented 230,000 hectares. Simultaneously, the potential production of cocaine surged to 1,700 tons, marking a substantial 24 per cent increase from the previous year.

Ecuador emerges as a major transit route

While Colombia grapples with the escalation of cocaine production, Ecuador has emerged as a notable transit route for smuggling the illicit drug. Recent reports indicate that Ecuadorian officials seized a submarine carrying 3.2 tonnes of cocaine. Remarkably, this successful operation was facilitated by intelligence provided by Colombia's navy.

The modus operandi of drug traffickers involves the ingenious use of speedboat hulls to construct submersibles.

These vessels are then adapted to operate slightly below the sea surface, allowing them to navigate more discreetly.

The interconnected challenges of increased cocaine production in Colombia and the utilisation of Ecuador as a smuggling route underscore the complex and transnational nature of the illicit drug trade in the region.

(With inputs from agencies)