A large-scale anti-narcotics operation under the jurisdiction of the Cape Verdean authorities (Judiciary Police and Coast Guard), assisted by a US Navy asset deployed in West Africa, has led to the seizure of 5668Kg of cocaine on board a Brazilian fishing vessel in the Atlantic. Seven crew members with Brazilian and Montenegrin nationalities have been arrested.
It is widely known that the archipelago’s vast exclusive economic zone and the scarce material and human resources available for active surveillance, favor the use of the Cape Verde archipelago as a transit country for international drug trafficking. Appreciative of this fact, the US Navy and Coast Guard have had an excellent relationship with Cape Verde, namely through bilateral law enforcement agreements and by providing support to combat illicit maritime activity in the waters surrounding the archipelago.
This result is also part of the Cape Verde authorities’ efforts to step up the fight against drug trafficking, particularly within the broader framework of international cooperation.
This successful operation supported by MAOC-N, was only possible through extensive international cooperation by various agencies and institutions such as the US Drugs Enforcement Administration (DEA), the US Navy and Coast Guard, the UK National Crime Agency (NCA), the Brazilian Federal Police and the aforementioned Cape Verdean authorities.
Press Release (Cape Verde): http://pj.gov.cv/2022/04/06/praia-pj-apreende-5-668-kg-de-cocaina-em-mega-operacao/
Press Release (US AFRICOM): https://www.africom.mil/pressrelease/34358/us-tri-maritime-services-and-cabo-verde-authorities-interdict-large-trans-oceanic-cocaine
