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🇺🇾 Uruguay /Crime & Justice

Details emerge on 400-kilogram drug seizure in Artigas: Seven arrested, leader has prior conviction

From El País · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Official statement Outcome reported
  • Uruguay seized more than 400 kilograms of drugs dropped from a small aircraft in Artigas during Operation Polux and arrested seven people in coordinated actions in Artigas and Salto.
  • The seizure included 300 kilograms of cocaine and 100 kilograms of cocaine paste, which authorities valued at about $3 million in Uruguay and $14 million in Europe.
  • Police identified the detained leader as a 40-year-old man previously convicted after authorities seized 800 kilograms of cocaine from him in 2019; one other suspected member remains wanted.

Operation Polux exposed a complex criminal structure after police watched people linked to the case in Artigas and Salto since February. The operation culminated on Thursday when officers saw a small aircraft fly over a rural area near Baltasar Brum and drop several packages as members of the group waited to collect them.

Police intercepted three vehicles at the site and carried out 11 simultaneous raids in Salto. Seven people were arrested, including the alleged leader, a 40-year-old man who had already been detained in 2019 with 800 kilograms of cocaine in Ciudad de la Costa, in Canelones. He was convicted in that case.

Very complex

· Pablo LotitoThe general commissioner described the criminal structure targeted in Operation Polux.

The general commissioner Pablo Lotito described the group as “very complex” and said it had “evident” links abroad. He also warned: “He had links with Sebastián Marset, and it cannot be ruled out that he still has them.”

Evident

· Pablo LotitoHe used the word to describe the group’s links abroad.

Interior Minister Carlos Negro said the seized drugs consisted of 300 kilograms of cocaine and 100 kilograms of cocaine paste, both originating in Peru. Authorities estimated their value at about $3 million on the Uruguayan market and $14 million on the European market, equivalent to roughly two million doses.

Police also seized six vehicles, a firearm, nine mobile phones, a water scooter, 23 aviation-fuel drums, handheld radios and a digital video recorder. Investigators believe the cocaine was intended for export, while the cocaine paste was meant for domestic consumption, although Lotito said shipments of cocaine paste to Europe have also been detected. One person linked to the group remains wanted.

He had links with Sebastián Marset, and it cannot be ruled out that he still has them.

· Pablo LotitoThe commissioner referred to the detained alleged leader’s previous links to Marset.
About this summary

Originally published by El País in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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