7.9 tons of drugs seized in weekend operations

The National Aeronaval Service (Senan) seized 7.9 tons of drugs” in several weekend operations, said Commissioner Rafael Jurado, of Senan, at a Tuesday press conference.

Three boats in which the drugs were transported were seized and their nine crew members detained.”There are almost eight tons in a few hours this weekend,” said prosecutor Eduardo de la Torre, at the press conference.

Senan’s troops seized part of the drugs in a boat detected southeast of Punta Coco on Isla del Rey (of the Pearl Archipelago), in the Pacific.

Another shipment was seized near Punta Burica, also in the Pacific, near the border with Costa Rica, and another in Los Santos, on the central Pacific coast.

The detainees are five Panamanians, two Ecuadorians, one Colombian, and one Costa Rican, according to the prosecutor.

Panama and the rest of Central America are transit points for drugs from South America destined for the north of the continent.

In 2022, Panama seized 138 tons of drugs, a figure higher than the previous year’s record of 128 tons, the vast majority of which was cocaine.