“The fight against drug trafficking is a State priority for our Government and we have been carrying out a frontal and transparent struggle against this scourge,” said the Vice Minister of Social Defense, Jaime Mamani.

The minister affirmed in an interview with the state channel Bolivia TV that this has allowed them to establish a record, when compared to previous administrations.

Mamani specified that 56.92 tons of cocaine and 737.81 tons of marijuana were seized from November 9th, 2020 to August 30th, 2023. He went on adding that 8,912 people were apprehended in the national territory for committing these crimes. He also emphasized that these results mean the destruction of and a strong impact on the assets of criminal organizations.

Mamani mentioned the destruction of a mega laboratory located in the Ichilo province, Santa Cruz department, on August 31st, among the most recent successful results of the Special Force combatting Drug Trafficking. “This mega laboratory had a production capability of 400 to 500 kilos of cocaine hydrochloride per month (…) with its total destruction we were able to affect the patrimony of drug trafficking in more than 800 thousand dollars,” the vice minister stated.

He said that on the same day, they also destroyed a clandestine runway 1,500 meters in length, located in the Germán Busch province, in the department of Santa Cruz, that was used by criminals to transport cocaine by air from Peru to Brazil.

jrr/llp/jf/jpm