Asia Pacific Daily Hannah
According to foreign media reports, on October 23, local time, Colombia's number one drug lord Dairo Antonio Ursuga was arrested in a joint operation of army, air force and police.
Colombia is the world's largest exporter of cocaine, and President Ivan Duke said on the same day, "This is the toughest blow to Colombian drug smuggling this century." He believes the arrest "is comparable to the downfall of prominent Colombian drug smuggling leader Pablo Escobar."
Dairo Antonio Ursuga, 50, nicknamed Otonier, is the leader of Colombia's largest drug crime syndicate, the Gulf Gang. According to Reuters, Colombia dispatched more than 500 soldiers and 22 helicopters, including members of the special forces, to launch "Operation Pluto" to capture Otonier in the jungle of the northwestern province of Antioquia.
According to the Colombian police, because many of his men have been arrested, Ottonier had to hide in the jungle and could not use the phone. Unfortunately, a police officer from the Government of Colombia was killed in the line of duty during the operation.
Otonier is regularly on the colombian and U.S. government's most wanted list. The Colombian government offered a $800,000 reward for Otonier's information, and the U.S. government offered a $5 million apprehension for his arrest.
The federal court in Manhattan, New York, in 2009 indicted O'Tonir on charges of drug trafficking and funding right-wing militias. Federal courts in Brooklyn and Miami have also accused Ottonier of smuggling at least 73 tons of cocaine to the United States through Venezuela, Guatemala and other countries between 2003 and 2014.
According to foreign media reports, Otonier will be extradited to the Federal Court for the Southern District of New York in the United States for trial.
(Source: Asia Pacific Daily APD News)