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Dominican Republic in crossfire of two deadly wars: Washington
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Santo Domingo.- While the Dominican Republic wages a successful fight against the dealing with humans, it will have to escalate its war on drug trafficking, according to two reports released separately in Washington on Wednesday.
The Annual Report on Trafficking in Persons keeps Dominican Republic in Category 2, along with others in the region such as Mexico, Chile, Brazil and Argentina, who’ve also made "significant efforts" to eradicate that crime.
Three years ago the Report placed the Dominican Republic Category 3, reserved for countries that are making efforts to fight the problem. Last year it was pulled out of a "watch list," resulting from the country's progress in the field.
War on drug trafficking
A senior U.S. official yesterday warned that in the measure the war on drug trafficking improves in Central America, drug trafficking in the Caribbean has nearly doubled since 2011, Washington's goal is to heighten security throughout the region in the short and long term.
The revelation came during a hearing of the House subcommittee on Western Hemisphere Affairs, in which U.S. State Department senior officials noted the progress in the war on drug trafficking and organized crime in Central America and the Caribbean, but cautioned that, in any case, it is a long-term task.
Although the movement of drugs particularly cocaine through the Caribbean is "a small percentage" of the entire region’s total flow, "it has risen from 5 percent to 9 percent" between 2011 and 2012,” said William R. Brownfield, Assistant Secretary of State for International Affairs and Narcotics.
"The trend we see is that it’s on the rise," said Brownfield, noting that Dominican Republic posted the highest percentage of drugs transiting through the Caribbean region.
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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (CMC) – The United States Coast Guard along with the Royal Netherlands Navy has seized 1,517 pounds of cocaine, with a street value of about US$24 million, from a go-fast vessel in the Caribbean Sea.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Coast Guard said as a result, three smugglers from the Dominican Republic have been detained.
The sea-interdiction stemmed from an “international multi-agency law enforcement effort” in support of Operation Unified Resolve, Operation Caribbean Guard and the Caribbean Corridor Strike Force.
The Coast Guard reports that on June 11, the crew of a marine surveillance aircraft detected three men aboard a suspicious go-fast vessel “loitering,” about 105 nautical miles south southeast of Ponce, Puerto Rico.
The Coast Guard alerted the Royal Netherlands Navy HNLMS Holland Offshore Patrol Vessel that was also on patrol.
On being detected, the suspected smugglers “began to flee the area at a high rate of speed and jettisoned multiple bales of suspected contraband overboard.”
“With the HNLMS Holland’s boats in pursuit, the smugglers came to a full stop,” it added. “The US Coast Guard LEDET proceeded to board the suspect vessel and detained the three men onboard.”
“Our local, federal and international partnerships are making a difference to stem the flow of drugs into Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands as far as possible and bring those responsible to justice,” said Coast Guard Captain Drew Pearson, Sector San Juan commander.
Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, US Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, said “these arrests and multi-kilogram seizure are a clear indication of the success of the Caribbean Corridor Strike Force Initiative.
“We will continue maximising all of our combined resources to investigate and prosecute those who in flagrant disregard of our laws and way of life try to smuggle illegal contraband into our area of jurisdiction,” she said.
Since May 21 last year, the US Coast Guard -- under Operation Unified Resolve, in partnership with regional law enforcement authorities in the Caribbean seized over 31.000 pounds of cocaine and 8,500 pounds of marijuana during 18 law enforcement interdictions.
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U.S. Coast Guard
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The Coast Guard, Royal Netherlands Navy and U.S. law enforcement partners seized 1,517 pounds of cocaine, a go-fast vessel and detained three Dominican smugglers, during an at-sea interdiction June 11, 2013 in the Caribbean Sea.
The drug shipment is estimated to have a wholesale value of more than $24 million dollars.
The interdiction was a result of an international multi-agency law enforcement effort in support of Operation Unified Resolve, Operation Caribbean Guard and the Caribbean Corridor Strike Force.
The crew of a patrolling Coast Guard Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry marine surveillance aircraft detected during the afternoon of June 11, 2013, three men aboard a suspicious go-fast vessel loitering, approximately 105 nautical miles south southeast of Ponce, Puerto Rico. A Coast Guard HC-144 Ocean Sentry and HC-130 Hercules along with a U.S. Customs and Border Protection P-3 fixed-wing aircraft maintained surveillance as Coast Guard watchstanders in Sector San Juan diverted the Coast Guard Cutter Sapelo to interdict the suspect vessel. The Royal Netherlands Navy HNLMS Holland Offshore Patrol Vessel, on patrol in the Caribbean Sea with a U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET) onboard, also responded upon being alerted.
The HNLMS Holland arrived on scene with the suspect vessel, launched their high-speed pursuit boats to interdict the go-fast. Upon being detected, the suspected smugglers began to flee the area at a high rate of speed and jettisoned multiple bales of suspected contraband overboard. With the HNLMS Holland’s boats in pursuit, the smugglers came to a full stop. The U.S. Coast Guard LEDET proceeded to board the suspect vessel and detain the three men onboard.
The Sapelo arrived on-scene shortly thereafter and began searching alongside the HNLMS Holland, with aerial support from Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry, Air Station Clearwater C-130, and Air Station Borinquen MH-65 Dolphin aircrafts, to find the bales of contraband that had been jettisoned into the water.
The HNLMS Holland initially located and recovered seven of the jettisoned bales from the water. The crew of the Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry located 13 additional bales and vectored in the HNLMS Holland to recover 11 of the bales, and the Sapelo, to recover the remaining two. In total, 20 bales of contraband were seized weighing over 1,517 pounds.
The crew of the Sapelo and HNLMS Holland conducted field tests which revealed the suspected contraband to be cocaine.
The Coast Guard LEDET transferred the detainees and the HNLMS Holland transferred the bales of contraband to the Sapelo for transport to Puerto Rico, while the suspect vessel was destroyed as a hazard to navigation.
The Sapelo transferred the detainees and the cocaine shipment to awaiting Customs and Border Protection officers and Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) special agents in Ponce, Puerto Rico June 13, 2013. ICE-Homeland Security Investigations is leading a criminal investigation into this case.
"Our local, federal and international partnerships are making a difference to stem the flow of drugs into Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands as far as possible and bring those responsible to justice,” said Coast Guard Capt. Drew Pearson, Sector San Juan commander. “Our commitment and resolve to protect our coasts and the citizens of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands from the threats that come from the sea is unwavering.”
“These arrests and multi-kilogram seizure are a clear indication of the success of the Caribbean Corridor Strike Force Initiative,” said Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. “We will continue maximizing all of our combined resources to investigate and prosecute those who in flagrant disregard of our laws and way of life try to smuggle illegal contraband into our area of jurisdiction.”
“This recent interdiction shows again that cooperation at sea is extremely important for counter-drug operations”, said Cmdr. RNLN Chris van den Berg, commanding officer of HNLMS Holland. “Not only interagency cooperation between the U.S. Coast Guard and the Royal Netherlands Navy, but also multinational cooperation between the United States and the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Together we can make a difference”
Since May 21, 2012, the Coast Guard has seized, under Operation Unified Resolve, in partnership with regional law enforcement authorities in the Caribbean, 31,400 pounds of cocaine and 8,500 pounds of marijuana during 18 law enforcement interdictions. The wholesale value for these seizures is worth over $387,500,000 million dollars.
The Coast Guard’s efforts under Operation Unified Resolve contribute to the interagency results being achieved each and every day locally under Operation Caribbean Guard, which coordinates efforts between the Coast Guard, its DHS, Commonwealth and Territorial law enforcement partners, who are working diligently to deter detect, and disrupt illicit maritime trafficking to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
CCSF is an initiative of the U.S. Attorney's Office created to disrupt and dismantle major drug trafficking organizations operating in the Caribbean. CCSF is part of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) that investigates South American-based drug trafficking organizations responsible for the movement of multi-kilogram quantities of narcotics using the Caribbean as a transshipment point for further distribution to the United States. The initiative is composed of HSI, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, Drug Enforcement Administration, FBI, the Coast Guard, CBP and PRPD's Joint Forces for Rapid Action.
The Coast Guard Cutter Sapelo is a 110-foot island class patrol boat homeported in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
© Copyright 2013 U.S. Coast Guard. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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While violence and dramatic stories grab the headlines, money laundering is the deeper story behind the drug trade in Costa Rica.
Known for its tranquil beaches and relaxed atmosphere, the Caribbean province of Limón is quickly gaining the wrong kind of notoriety following several high-profile drug stories in recent weeks.
Dramatic incidents like the killing of turtle conservationist Jairo Mora captured international attention, and the daily La Nación ran several stories on how indigenous tribes in Limón have turned to the drug trade. While Limón bears the brunt of the violence from drug-related crime, the region's troubles are part of a wider story. Over the weekend, La Nación reported that drug gang rivalries were the motivation behind the killing of two men in Pueblo Nuevo, Limón, on Sunday.
Long the exception to the drug violence that ravaged its neighbors in Central America and Mexico, Costa Rica finds itself increasingly involved in drug-related crime. Squeezed by police patrols,Caribbean drug routes shifted overland to Central America, and into Costa Rica, according to InSight Crime, a research organization based in Washington, D.C.
“We are prisoners to our geography,” Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla told The Wall Street Journal, referring to the country’s location between cocaine producers in South America and consumers in the United States. Soon after she made those comments, however, Chinchilla found herself on the defensive following revelations that she used a private plane allegedly linked to a drug cartel for state visits.
Today, Costa Rica, known as the “Switzerland of the Americas” for its stable democracy and lack of standing army, has grown into a major distribution point for traffickers. Reports claim that drugs reach 39 different countries across four continents from the small country. Costa Rica also faces rising domestic drug consumption, including crack cocaine.
This week, La Nación ran several stories about how marijuana traffickers have embedded themselves in the Cabécar-Telire indigenous reservation in Limón. The newspaper highlighted a lack of police resources and infrastructure, difficult terrain and a lack of economic opportunities in the region as major hurdles to curbing the booming black market.
While violence and dramatic stories grab the headlines, money laundering is the deeper story behind the drug trade in Costa Rica. Arthur Budovsky, a 39-year-old Ukrainian-born Costa Rican citizen, was arrested in Madrid, Spain, in May for allegedly operating the largest money-laundering operation in the world, according to the U.S. Justice Department. Budovsky, who was based in Costa Rica, laundered funds from drug traffickers and other criminals through the online payment company Liberty Reserve.
In 2011, Global Financial Integrity, a nonprofit research organization based in Washington, D.C., reported that an average of $4.47 billion passed through the country every year between 2000 and 2008, equal to one-fifth of the country’s gross domestic product over the same period.
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