Boat crew dumped 115 kilos of cocaine in the Pacific while fleeing from the navy, Colombia says

The crew of a speedboat dumped more than 100 packages of cocaine into the Pacific Ocean while fleeing the Colombian navy, authorities said Tuesday, as the country’s leader visited President Trump in Washington amid growing pressure from the United States to curb drug trafficking. Colombia is the largest cocaine producing country in the world.

Authorities seized 115.7 kilograms of cocaine that were transported in a “fast” vessel 55 nautical miles off the Pacific coast of Colombia during an operation against international drug trafficking, the country’s Navy reported in a statement.

As authorities approached, the crew aboard the speedboat fled, throwing rectangular packages containing the drugs into the sea, naval officials said. Officers proceeded to recover 116 packages from the ocean.

The cocaine haul amounted to 289,000 doses of narcotics worth $5.6 million, the navy said. Authorities released multiple images of the operation, showing packages of the alleged cocaine floating in the sea.

The seizure was announced the same day that Colombian President Gustavo Petro met with President Trump at the White House.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Tuesday that the meeting had not yet concluded and she could not provide a readout, but said Trump was in a “positive headspace” beforehand and had been looking forward to it. Petro previously told News themezone he hoped that dialogue with Trump would “stop a world war.”

The Trump administration has continued a military campaign against alleged ships transporting drugs off South America in the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. Those attacks, which began in September, have killed more than 100 people.

Relations between Washington and Bogotá have been tense, with the United States accusing the Colombian government of failing to contain a rise in cocaine production. Last October, Mr. Trump called petro an “illegal drug leader” and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced sanctions against Petro and his family. The United States also removed Colombia from list of allies in the war on drugs.

However, Colombia has recently announced several major drug busts.

Last month, the Colombian Navy seized more two tons of cocaine after chasing a speedboat loaded with drugs and fuel in the South Pacific Ocean. In November, the nation announced its biggest cocaine bust in a decade, with 14 tons confiscated in its main Pacific port.