Ecuador: 14 detained in major drug smuggling network

laht.com reported Ecuadorian police have arrested 14 people allegedly belonging to the country’s most dangerous drug-trafficking network which smuggled narcotics to Guatemala and Panama for transport to Mexico and the United States, officials said. In a statement on Monday the Interior Ministry said the sweep, codenamed “Pacifico” involved 22 simultaneous search operations early Monday in the coastal provinces of Guayas, Santa Elena and Manabi in western Ecuador. Investigators had been working on the case since early last year when operations were launched, leading to the discovery of a weekly shipment of some 400 kg (around 882 pounds) of drugs to Guatemala and Panama using speed boats. Read Article