Colombian special forces captured notorious drug dealer Dairo Antonio Usuga in a large-scale operation on Saturday (October 24), according to Russia Today (RT). The highly publicized "Gulf Gang" leader has allegedly been on the run for more than a decade.
Russian Television Today (RT) reports with picture
In the jungles of the Uraba region in the northwestern part of the country, some 500 soldiers and 22 helicopters were reportedly involved in a raid on the big drug lord's hiding place. Authorities said the United States and Britain provided intelligence for the operation, in which a police officer was killed.
Later on Saturday (24th), the drug lord appeared in front of the media in handcuffs, surrounded by heavily armed soldiers. In footage released by the Colombian armed forces, the 50-year-old drug lord can be seen wearing tall rubber boots that are usually worn by farmers in the country.
Colombian President Ivan Duque said the arrest of Ursuga, nicknamed "Otoniel," was "the greatest blow to drug trafficking in our country this century." Only the collapse of Pablo Escobar, the drug lord of the 1990s, can be compared to this blow. ”
Ottonier is believed to be the leader of the Gulf Gang, a drug trafficking group that controls major cocaine smuggling routes in the jungle and has been in fear for years in much of northern Colombia. The Gulf Gang has about 1,200 militants, most of whom are former guerrillas. Among other things, the authorities accused Otonier and his henchmen of recruiting minors using violence and sexual abuse.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) had earlier issued a $5 million bounty to O'Thonier. In 2009, a federal court in Manhattan indicted him on drug charges and aiding far-right militia designated by the United States as a terrorist organization. Subsequently, federal courts in Brooklyn and Miami filed indictments alleging that O'Tonil smuggled 73 metric tons of cocaine into the United States between 2003 and 2014 through countries such as Venezuela, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama and Honduras. (Editor: SDY)