US Treasury sanctions Ecuador-to-US cocaine trafficking network
The U.S. Treasury announced sanctions on Thursday against 15 individuals for their involvement in a cocaine trafficking network that allegedly shipped thousands of kilograms of cocaine from Ecuador to the United States through Mexico each month. The network, believed to be operated by the Ecuadorean gangs Los Choneros and Los Lobos, used fishing vessels to transport the drugs.
The Sinaloa Cartel and Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG) are also implicated in the smuggling process. Ecuador has been facing increasing drug violence, with a homicide rate of 50 per 100,000 residents in 2021, according to the Ministry of the Interior. President Daniel Noboa has been a strong ally of U.S. President Donald Trump in counter-narcotics operations in the region.
The U.S. has also increased its maritime presence in Ecuador's waters, with two warships and three Black Hawk helicopters supporting the fight against drug trafficking.
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