crime

Drug lords moving north

Panama is becoming a favorite spot for drug lords who are being pushed out of Colombia.

Authorities say Panama is also a place where Mexican drug cartels come to pick up shipments.

courtesy/el tiempo

caught: While this infamous Colombian drug lord, Diego León Montoya Sánchez, is in custody, officials say that some of his associates have relocated to Panama.1098183

Very few officials dare to say it out loud, but there is a growing concern among Colombian and U.S. authorities about a new wave of drug cartels that are operating in countries such as Panama.

“We do not want to create panic, but it is an undeniable truth,” said a Colombian security agent who spoke on the condition that his name not be used. “There are networks of drug traffickers contesting for control of Panama's drug market.”

According to this official, several drug lords and their henchmen have moved into Panama to better network with Mexican cartels. They are using the country to launder their drug profits as well as a base in which to transport drugs to North America.

The current director of the Colombian Police, Gen. Oscar Naranjo, said that the new drug gangs are more mobile than criminal organizations of the past.

“There is no longer a principle of territorial control,” the police official told an international news service. “Traffickers are now operating with a vision of a global drug business. "

This vision is shared by U.S. drug agents in Bogota who work with Gen. Naranjo. They told La Prensa that the fall of one of the country's drug lords, known as “Don Diego,” prompted many of his subordinates to seek refuge in other countries.

“Some are hiding in Venezuela and Mexico, and many others are in Panama,” the U.S. official said.

The U.S. began to close in on Don Diego, whose real name is Diego León Montoya Sánchez, in September of 2007. A $5 million reward coupled with a concerted effort by the Colombian military slowly loosened Sánchez's grip on his stronghold in southwest Colombia.

As authorities closed in, the drug cartel sought the help of Mexican cartels who offered protection in several countries, including Panama, so that drugs could be transported north by land.

Members of the drug cartel started arriving in Panama City, as well as other parts of the country.

“It is clear that many of “Don Diego's” associates are in Panama,” a Colombian official said. “But looking for them is like trying to find a needle in a haystack.”

The Colombian officials said that the drug traffickers can work quietly in Panama because few people know who they are. Their presence has increased Panama's role as a shipping hub for Colombian cocaine headed to Mexico and beyond.

According to intelligence reports, at least 20 major Colombian drug traffickers have left that country recently, and a portion of them are suspected of being in Panama.

There is also mounting evidence that paramilitary groups are becoming more heavily involved in trafficking cocaine from Colombia into Panama through the Darién. These groups, including FARC, receive money and weapons in exchange for transporting the shipments.

Perhaps most worrying for Panamanians is the fact that the country seems to be the meeting point for Colombian and Mexican drug cartels, which some authorities indicate is the reason more execution-style murders are being seen in the country, as well as an increasing number of drug stings.

But what has been accomplished so far by authorities appears to have had little impact on the drug trade here.