In a press conference, Vítor Ananias, the coordinator of the National Unit to Combat Drug Trafficking of the Polícia Judiciária, announced the arrest of two Ecuadorians, one Venezuelan, and one Colombian, indicating that the investigation will determine the “hierarchical division” within the group.
The four suspects were placed in preventive detention following their hearings at the criminal investigation court in Ponta Delgada, São Miguel, Azores.
“They have different nationalities, which also demonstrates that these organizations are not just based in a single country but are highly mobile. They were aged over 40 and under 65,” he noted.
The official stated that the crew aboard the semisubmersible, originating from Venezuela and heading towards the Iberian Peninsula, possessed “some maritime experience and their function was precisely to bring the narco-submarine to a point in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and return.”
“Different pieces of information are gathered to help construct a ‘puzzle.’ Once this ‘puzzle’ is completed, we gain a clearer idea of the ‘big picture’ of the situation, allowing us to adjust national resources for interventions and interdictions at sea,” he emphasized, highlighting the framework of international cooperation in information sharing.
Vítor Ananias stressed that it is a “dynamic process” and that authorities will “direct resources towards successful intervention,” ensuring continued efforts in combating criminal organizations.
The coordinator mentioned that the detainees did not show “any type of resistance” after spending 15 days at sea, “completely confined without any privacy or privileges.”
“With the heat, fumes from the boat, high waves, and difficult weather conditions, one day is hard, but after 15 or 20 days, you are completely wishing to leave,” he explained.
In the press conference, Commander Ricardo Sá Granja, the spokesperson for the Portuguese Navy and the National Maritime Authority, stated that the seizure occurred more than 1,852 kilometers from Lisbon.
“The Navy, through a vast array of operational force system resources, including command and control capabilities, inspection, and force projection, employed around 70 military personnel in this operation for over 138 hours, approximately six days, navigating more than 1,527 nautical miles, more than 2,800 kilometers during this operation,” he emphasized.
The commander noted that because of the narco-submarine’s fragile construction, “it was not possible to tow it to shore, and it ended up sinking.”
The head of the Air Operations Center of the Portuguese Air Force Command, Colonel Agostinho Rocha, recalled that the air branch of the Armed Forces collaborates with the Polícia Judiciária and the Navy in such operations, whenever “it is requested and operationally possible.”
