More drugs afloat on Atlantic

PANAMA. The seemingly calm waters of the Atlantic Ocean, bordering Colon, recently set the stage for the latest drug bust.

An IOSCAN test, which scans the presence of illicit substances, conducted by the National Sea and Air Service and the US Coast guard on a suspicious vessel with two illegal Colombian citizens on board, came up positive. There had been drugs inside the vessel, but the current whereabouts remained a mystery.

The authorities continued their search and located a 27 ft long motorboat with three more Colombians on board and what looked like 48 bags of cocaine.

Surrounded and placed under arrest, the suspects and drugs were taken to the Cristobal Colon Almirante naval base where authorities found drug shipment to 1200 kilos of cocaine, the largest haul on the Atlantic coast this year. It is now in the hands of Colon's Drug Prosecutor.

Three days earlier in another drug bust in the areas of Juan Diaz, Brisas de Golf and San Miguelito, authorities were able to seize more than a ton of cocaine.

Preliminary investigations show that residences in these areas were used as drug packing centers, a rare occurrence in Panama, as drug dealers from neighboring countries usually send their merchandise pre-packed.

More than 10 tons of drugs have been captured this year.