The President of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, announced that
the National Navy carried out the largest drug seizure ever recorded in the country.
The operation took place at sea, approximately 380 nautical miles (703
kilometers) southwest of the Salvadoran coast.
During the operation, the FMS Eagle, a 54-meter-long
multipurpose support vessel registered under the Tanzanian flag, was intercepted.
According to the official report, the illicit cargo was hidden in internal
compartments, specifically inside the ship's ballast tanks, a method used to
evade inspection controls.
To confirm the presence of the drugs, specialized units
deployed naval divers, who conducted a detailed underwater search. The
inspection led to the discovery of 330 packages containing a total of 6.6 tons
of cocaine. Authorities estimated the value of the shipment at approximately
$165 million on the international market.
Ten people were aboard the vessel, identified by authorities
as suspected members of an international drug trafficking network: four
Colombian nationals, three Nicaraguans, two Panamanians, and one Ecuadorian.
All were arrested and turned over to the justice system.
The president described the seizure as a “major blow” to
drug trafficking organizations operating in the region, emphasizing that these
types of operations are part of his government's security and organized crime
strategy.