The naval authorities of Panama seized more than four and a half tons of cocaine in a joint operation with their Colombian counterparts in the Caribbean Sea, where five people were also arrested, according to the Colombian Navy.
An intelligence notice from that country alerted Panamanian authorities about the transit of a speedboat in its waters that was headed for Central America, the institution said in a statement.
“Upon noticing the presence of the Panamanian naval authorities, the five occupants of the motorboat (all Colombian citizens) got rid of more than 90 packages, and then undertook the flight”
fruitlessly, according to the bulletin.
The 4,575 kilograms of cocaine seized were valued at 152 million dollars by the authorities.
Colombia is the world’s leading coca leaf grower, with some 169,000 hectares planted in 2018, according to the most recent UN report. The South American country produces about 70% of the cocaine that circulates in the world and that travels largely through Central America, bound for the United States -the main consumer of the product- and Europe.