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Police seize cocaine

Police intercepted more than a ton of cocaine yesterday and arrested three people in Chiriquí.

LA PRENSA

busted: Operation Surprise has led to the confiscation of millions of dollars worth of cocaine. 968200

Police and Fiscalía de Drogas officers seized 1,190 kilograms of cocaine yesterday in Chiriquí and Bocas del Toro, authorities said.

Francis Montenegro, 38, was arrested in Chiriquí while driving a minibus filled with a ton of cocaine.

"The confiscation is part of a project called 'Surprise,'" or "Sorpresa" in Spanish, drug prosecutor José Abel Almengor said yesterday. "Other violent incidents around the country," such as the death of a young woman on the Chame highway, "are directly connected to the transportation of this illegal material," he added.

Authorities also found cocaine in Los Chiricanos, in Chiriquí Grande, where a number of firearms were confiscated as well. Rogelio Maros Ledezma, 22, and Iván Alberto Bonilla, 27, who were transporting the illegal cargo, were arrested thanks to a tip-off police received from an anonymous source.

Ernesto Silva, from the Fiscalía de Drogas, said Operation Surprise started last December when two suspect speedboats were seized for a routine search. Two hidden compartments were found inside the boats.

Police said they are following up on clues to find out where the drugs were headed.