The Transport of Cocaine Hydrochloride from the Gulf of Urabá to Panama and Costa Rica for Subsequent Shipment to Europe and Other Destinations

Abstract

Authorities of the Republic of Panama frequently conduct operations to seize speedboats at sea in the Caribbean, which generally transport cocaine hydrochloride. In this context, criminal organizations combine several routes to make monitoring and control more difficult, using speedboats with different capabilities to navigate either far from or close to the coast, depending on Caribbean weather conditions and their impact on navigation and detection. The speedboats depart from the Gulf of Urabá and, in some cases, simultaneously with twin boats from the border between Costa Rica and Panama, heading toward an intermediate point where they would exchange the cargo before returning to their respective points of origin. On other occasions, the vessels travel directly, either far from or close to the coast. The drugs that reach land would be stored in easily accessible locations, where they could be used to contaminate containers bound for various destinations around the world. This paper describes the possible routes and variations used by criminal organizations to transport cocaine hydrochloride from the Gulf of Urabá to Europe and other destinations, using speedboats and container contamination.