Record Breaking Narco Sub Seizure Reveals New Trans-Pacific Smuggling Route

 “Socalj” for Borderland Beat

The discovery of a semi-submersible vessel carrying cocaine in the Pacific was part of a global six-week operation against drug smugglers.

Colombia’s navy has uncovered a new drug smuggling route from South America to Australia after intercepting a “narco submarine” packed with cocaine in the Pacific Ocean.

The discovery was made during a six-week anti-narcotics operation — carried out jointly by Colombian authorities and security officials from dozens of other countries — that resulted in the seizure of at least 225 tonnes of cocaine, according to media reports.

“This is perhaps the largest seizure of cocaine in transit made by Colombia in history,” Colombian President Gustavo Petro said in a post on X.

Operation Orion

Six narco subs stuffed with cocaine were captured in a Colombian-led international anti-drug operation, authorities in the Latin American nation said Wednesday, as part of a huge global bust.

At least 400 people were reportedly arrested in the crackdown, “Operation Orion”, which also stopped illegal arms shipments and led to the arrests of migrant smugglers.

Among the haul was the 225 metric tons of cocaine, 5 tons of which was found aboard a semi-submersible vessel plying a marine trafficking route from Colombia to Australia.

The vessel, intercepted in Pacific waters with enough fuel to reach Australia, was the third such “narco sub” intercepted on the route. “This is a new route that they have opened for semi-submersibles,” Manuel Rodríguez, head of the Colombian navy’s anti-narcotics unit, told the media on Wednesday.

“The first was discovered in Colombian waters, and thanks to the maps it carried, we identified the route. That’s when we began working with Australian authorities,” he added.

Narco Subs Intercepted

The latest narco-sub was intercepted 1,200 miles or 2,000 km southwest of Clipperton Island, an uninhabited French coral atoll in the Pacific.  

The wood-and-fibre-glass vessel is thought to have sailed from the Colombian port of Tumaco, covering thousands of miles before it was stopped. The semi-submersible was capable of traveling 16,000 kilometers without needing to refuel at sea.

The chief of naval operations staff for the Colombian Navy, Vice-Admiral Orlando Enrique Grisales, said the three semi-submersibles they had stopped were all capable of sailing from Colombia to Australia without the need to refuel at sea.

“The first was discovered in Colombian waters, and thanks to the maps it carried, we identified the route,” the vice-admiral told reporters at a news conference.

“That’s when we began working with Australian authorities,” he added.

Australian Drug Market

Australians are the highest per capita users of cocaine in the world, followed by Britain, according to the OECD.

Australian police have warned in recent years that international drugs cartels are increasingly targeting the country, where a surge in cocaine use combined with some of the highest street prices in the world has fueled a lucrative illicit market.

The interception is said to have deprived drug gangs of at least $8.4 billion (€8 billion), according to Colombia’s Navy.

A kilogram of cocaine can sell for up to $240,000 in Australia, about six times higher than the price in the US.

The Australian market for methamphetamine or “ice” is still massive. Recently, Mexican cartels, in conjunction with Aussie bikies and European criminal groups have stepped up to supply the continent following crackdowns on drug trafficking from Asia.