Edition O'031

Drug News Roundup

Monday, October 5, 2026 · 14 stories

Catch-up edition. The site last published on Sept 23, so this covers significant reporting from Sept 23 through Oct 5, a gap of about 12 days instead of the usual 24 hours; stories already in the dedupe log are excluded. Several search hits were dropped as stale: a Bronx fentanyl bust from April 2026, a European 8-tonne cocaine bust from 2024, a Central New York fentanyl case from 2025, and Asheville seizures from April. Strike totals differ by outlet: CBS counts 70 strikes and 235 dead, UPI 71 and 238.

1National / Federal (US)

US boat strike in the Caribbean kills four, taking the campaign to about 70 strikes and 235 dead

4 killedCaribbean Sea

SOUTHCOM said Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere hit a go-fast boat in the Caribbean on Oct. 4, killing four; no evidence of drugs aboard or the victims' identities was released. It was the first strike since the UN's Ben Saul said on Sept. 20 there were reasonable grounds to see the campaign as extrajudicial killings. CBS counts at least 235 dead in 70 strikes since September 2025, while UPI tallies 71 strikes and 238 dead, and the ACLU is pursuing a case alleging some victims were fishermen and farmers.

SourceCBS News / UPI / SOUTHCOM

Pixel-art scene: smuggling vessel stopped at sea — smuggling vessel stopped at sea

Treasury sanctions 21 people and 25 entities in the Sinaloa Cartel's Los Mayos faction

21 people, 25 entitiesSinaloa, Mexico

OFAC announced the designations on Oct. 1 against the Los Mayos wing of the Sinaloa Cartel, covering alleged fentanyl traffickers, money launderers and facilitators who relied on corrupt local officials. The listings freeze US assets and bar Americans from dealing with those named.

SourceUS Treasury / The Yucatan Times

Pixel-art scene: money-laundering network dismantled — money-laundering network dismantled

Two Dominican drug agents indicted in Miami after a DEA sting that lured them to Florida

5 kg+ cocaine chargedMiami, Florida2 charged

A Southern District of Florida grand jury charged DNCD officers Deny Sepúlveda de León and Oliver Guevara Rodríguez on Oct. 1 with conspiring to distribute and attempting to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine for import into the US. They were arrested Sept. 28 after Dominican media said they were invited to Miami for a training course.

SourceRio Times

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 5 kg+ cocaine charged — 5 × 1 kg cocaine

Charlotte-area task force indicts two Mexican nationals over 60 kilos of meth and fentanyl

~60 kg meth and fentanylCharlotte, North Carolina2 indicted

Martin Hernandez Nunez, 36, and Juan Carlos Mojarro Sanchez, 38, were indicted in the Western District of North Carolina after a Homeland Security Task Force probe that ended in May. Agents recovered about 60 kg of crystal meth and fentanyl in total, plus over $66,000 in alleged proceeds; the announcement came Sept. 23.

SourceUS Attorney's Office, W.D.N.C.

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: ~60 kg meth and fentanyl — 6 × 10 kg meth

2Local US Arrests

Alhambra police K-9 finds about 200 kilos of cocaine in boxes inside an SUV

~200 kg cocaineAlhambra, California1 arrested

Alhambra, California officers stopped an SUV on Oct. 4 on Valley Boulevard near the 710 Freeway, and a dog alerted on cardboard boxes holding roughly 440 pounds (about 200 kg) of cocaine. Driver Julio Rangel of Huntington Park was arrested after giving shifting explanations for the cargo.

SourceFox News / Alhambra Police

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: ~200 kg cocaine — 20 × 10 kg cocaine

3South America

Colombian police dismantle an ELN-linked cocaine lab near Cúcuta with 1.1 tonnes of product

1,120 kg cocaine, 125 kg baseCúcuta, Colombia8 arrested

A police-army operation on Oct. 3 in rural Cúcuta, Norte de Santander, hit a lab tied to the ELN's Frente Urbano Reinaldo Ardila, seizing 1,120 kg of cocaine and 125 kg of base paste plus chemicals. Eight suspects were arrested, including an alleged operational leader; the lab could reportedly make two tonnes a month.

SourceTDI Colombia

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 1,120 kg cocaine, 125 kg base — 12 × 10 kg cocaine

Colombian Navy stops a river boat carrying 1.5 tonnes of cocaine on the Meta toward Venezuela

1,498 kg cocaineRío Meta, Colombia

On Sept. 26 the Navy intercepted a boat on the Río Meta near the Venezuelan border carrying 1,498 kg of cocaine in 38 packages; two men aboard fled. Authorities said the load came from the La Primavera corridor and may have been meant for the ELN's eastern front.

SourceInfobae

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 1,498 kg cocaine — 5 × 100 kg cocaine

Colombia captures the wife and daughter of Ecuador's Choneros boss Fito over a $25 million laundering case

$25M laundering caseSantander, Colombia2 arrested

Colombian and Ecuadorian authorities, with FBI help, arrested Inda Peñarrieta and Michelle Macías in Sabana de Torres, Santander on Sept. 27 under Interpol notices in Ecuador's "Blanqueo Fito" case. They were expelled and jailed at La Roca prison in Guayaquil on Sept. 29; neither is convicted.

SourceRio Times / InSight Crime

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: $25M laundering case — and the cash

Ecuador finds 748 kilos of cocaine mixed into cement bound for Turkey at Posorja

748 kg cocainePosorja, Ecuador

Police Operation Fénix 0546 intercepted the cargo at the Posorja port terminal, announced Oct. 1. A separate Oct. 1 Posorja find turned up 37 packages of cocaine in a container for Germany and led to the detention of the exporter's representative.

SourceEl Diario (Ecuador) / Infobae

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 748 kg cocaine — 7 × 100 kg ≈ 748 kg cocaine

Brazilian highway police pull more than a tonne of drugs from trucks in Rondônia and Bahia

~1.15 t drugsRondônia and Bahia, Brazil

PRF officers on Oct. 4 stopped a truck on BR-364 in Presidente Médici, Rondônia carrying about 625 kg of drugs including 107.7 kg of cocaine and 47.7 kg of base paste. On Oct. 5 another stop on BR-116 in Vitória da Conquista, Bahia yielded about 522 kg, including 78 kg of cocaine and 10.5 kg of paste.

SourceBlog do Léo Santos / Jornal Info Rondônia

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: ~1.15 t drugs — 23 × 50 kg drugs

4Rest of World

Spanish customs find 862 kilos of cocaine in an Ecuadorian sugar container at Valencia

862 kg cocaineValencia, Spain

Officers selected the container on Sept. 27 and found 862 one-kilo bricks in 32 net-wrapped bundles stacked on the sugar, which had come from Guayaquil. Investigators suspect the load was hoisted aboard at sea with help from crew; no arrests were reported.

SourceThe Olive Press

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 862 kg cocaine — 9 × 100 kg ≈ 862 kg cocaine

Belgium, France and the Netherlands arrest 21 in a ring that moved cocaine on commercial flights

85 kg cocaine, 30 kg cannabisBelgium / France / Netherlands21 arrested

A Eurojust-coordinated action day on Sept. 30 saw 27 searches and 21 arrests, plus over €57,000 in cash, crypto wallets, eight vehicles and two guns. The case began with 30 kg of cocaine found in bags at Brussels Airport, later joined by a 55 kg cocaine and 30 kg cannabis seizure.

SourceEurojust

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 85 kg cocaine, 30 kg cannabis — 8 × 10 kg ≈ 85 kg cocaine · 30 kg cannabis

Dominican forces seize 749 packages from two go-fast boats off Baní, with DEA support

749 packagesBaní, Dominican Republic4 detained

The DNCD and Navy intercepted two boats off Baní on Oct. 4, one with 281 packages and one with 468, and detained four Dominicans; weights await forensic testing. SOUTHCOM-linked agencies and the DEA assisted, and a monkey was found aboard one boat.

SourceNoticias SIN / Infobae

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 749 packages — all 749 packages

Panama's Senan stops a speedboat with 2,852 packages south of Punta Burica

2,852 packagesChiriquí, Panama3 arrested

On Oct. 4 under Operation Protective Shield, the boat rammed a patrol vessel before being stopped and began taking on water. Three crew were arrested; Senan has seized 57,334 packages in 87 operations this year.

SourceNewsroom Panama

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 2,852 packages — all 852 packages

5Ongoing Stories with New Developments

Nothing significant in the past 24 hours.

2026 Running Tally

Total weight intercepted across every story covered so far this year, through Oct 5, 2026. Counts seizures only — sentencings and indictments are not double-counted — and resets to zero each 1 January. Earlier years are kept below.

150 t 31 editions · 57 places · 14 substances

United States

Florida4 substances4.3 t

cocaine3.3 t
cannabis964 kg
fentanyl9.5 kg
methamphetamine4.2 kg

Puerto Rico1 substance3.3 t

cocaine3.3 t

Texas5 substances1.6 t

methamphetamine1.4 t
cocaine251 kg
heroin16 kg
cannabis1.8 kg
mdma640 g

California5 substances1.5 t

methamphetamine1.2 t
cocaine292 kg
fentanyl43 kg
heroin1 kg
mdma68 g

Illinois2 substances686 kg

khat532 kg
cocaine154 kg

Georgia4 substances344 kg

cannabis334 kg
carfentanil9.1 kg
methamphetamine450 g
fentanyl110 g

New York3 substances284 kg

cocaine277 kg
fentanyl7.6 kg
fentanyl/heroin250 g

Maryland2 substances152 kg

cocaine140 kg
fentanyl12 kg

Pennsylvania2 substances127 kg

cannabis113 kg
cocaine14 kg

Indiana1 substance126 kg

cocaine126 kg

District of Columbia3 substances117 kg

methamphetamine64 kg
cocaine50 kg
fentanyl3 kg

Minnesota2 substances28 kg

methamphetamine27 kg
cocaine883 g

Massachusetts2 substances22 kg

fentanyl22 kg
cocaine394 g

Kentucky2 substances20 kg

methamphetamine20 kg
fentanyl60 g

Mississippi5 substances17 kg

cannabis9.5 kg
methamphetamine4.8 kg
cocaine3 kg
mdma140 g
fentanyl25 g

North Carolina3 substances10 kg

cocaine8.2 kg
cannabis1.8 kg
fentanyl126 g

South Carolina2 substances7.9 kg

fentanyl4.1 kg
methamphetamine3.8 kg

Wisconsin3 substances6.7 kg

cannabis4.5 kg
cocaine1.8 kg
methamphetamine370 g

Missouri2 substances6 kg

cocaine3.5 kg
fentanyl2.5 kg

Virginia3 substances5.6 kg

methamphetamine5.3 kg
fentanyl195 g
cocaine190 g

North Dakota2 substances5.6 kg

methamphetamine5.4 kg
cocaine155 g

West Virginia3 substances4.8 kg

methamphetamine3.6 kg
fentanyl909 g
cocaine233 g

Tennessee3 substances4.7 kg

fentanyl2.2 kg
methamphetamine2 kg
cocaine500 g

Ohio4 substances4.5 kg

methamphetamine2.5 kg
cocaine2 kg
fentanyl10 g
heroin3 g

Alabama3 substances3.3 kg

methamphetamine2.3 kg
cocaine1 kg
fentanyl21 g

Nebraska2 substances2.4 kg

methamphetamine2.4 kg
cocaine17 g

International

Colombia4 substances24.4 t

cocaine18.1 t
cannabis5.5 t
coca base809 kg
heroin15 kg

Brazil4 substances21.8 t

cannabis18.1 t
cocaine3.3 t
coca base360 kg
hashish45 kg

Mexico4 substances21.0 t

methamphetamine19.2 t
cannabis1.8 t
fentanyl19 kg
heroin7.7 kg

Spain2 substances20.3 t

hashish11.3 t
cocaine9.0 t

Ecuador2 substances15.4 t

cocaine14.5 t
cannabis900 kg

Nigeria3 substances7.0 t

cannabis7.0 t
methamphetamine2 kg
cocaine350 g

Portugal1 substance5.3 t

hashish5.3 t

Chile2 substances5.1 t

cannabis5.1 t
cocaine7.2 kg

France1 substance3.9 t

cocaine3.9 t

Indonesia1 substance2.6 t

methamphetamine2.6 t

Romania3 substances1.6 t

hashish1.3 t
cannabis228 kg
cocaine114 kg

Argentina3 substances1.6 t

cannabis1.3 t
cocaine321 kg
mdma52 kg

Pakistan4 substances1.5 t

hashish1.0 t
opium242 kg
heroin202 kg
methamphetamine2 kg

Venezuela1 substance905 kg

cannabis905 kg

Peru2 substances698 kg

cocaine448 kg
coca base250 kg

Dominican Republic1 substance587 kg

cocaine587 kg

Thailand1 substance516 kg

methamphetamine516 kg

Sri Lanka1 substance463 kg

methamphetamine463 kg

Uruguay2 substances408 kg

cocaine305 kg
coca base103 kg

Bolivia1 substance405 kg

cocaine405 kg

South Africa1 substance341 kg

cocaine341 kg

Costa Rica1 substance312 kg

cocaine312 kg

India5 substances154 kg

methamphetamine72 kg
cannabis45 kg
amphetamine17 kg
mdma14 kg
heroin5.7 kg

Hong Kong2 substances141 kg

cocaine76 kg
ketamine65 kg

Afghanistan1 substance101 kg

opium101 kg

Malaysia3 substances98 kg

methamphetamine86 kg
mdma11 kg
ketamine630 g

Canada7 substances59 kg

fentanyl28 kg
mdma12 kg
methamphetamine7.7 kg
cocaine6.2 kg
ketamine4.5 kg
heroin700 g
cannabis479 g

Philippines1 substance34 kg

methamphetamine34 kg

Ireland2 substances26 kg

cocaine22 kg
cannabis4 kg

Italy1 substance17 kg

methamphetamine17 kg

South Korea2 substances1.8 kg

methamphetamine1.2 kg
ketamine500 g