Operation CANTABRIA:Fruit-export front used to hide cocaine shipments from Ecuador
492 Mins Read
Police in Ecuador arrested 20 suspects Thursday in an operation targeting a network that moved large amounts of cocaine from Latin America to Europe, Europol said.
Ecuador’s Federal Police carried out the arrests and searched 23 properties on Oct. 8, working with Spain’s Guardia Civil and National Police. Europol supported the operation, code-named CANTABRIA.
Investigators say the network used Ecuador as an export hub because of its proximity to Colombia, the world’s leading cocaine producer. It also has a strong export sector, particularly tropical fruit shipments to Europe, and major commercial ports with heavy container traffic.
The group hid drugs in commercial freight, taking advantage of the sheer volume of maritime trade to avoid detection, authorities said. To get past police and customs inspections, it operated as tropical fruit import-export companies.
Suspects also kept bases in Peru and at major European logistics hubs, including ports in Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands, and established operational links in the United Arab Emirates, according to the investigation.
“International cooperation is our greatest strength against drug trafficking,” said Magnus Brunner, the European Union commissioner for internal affairs and migration. He said the operation showed that 43 tonnes of cocaine had been seized and a major trafficking route into Europe disrupted.
Two Ecuadorian officers were posted to Europol’s headquarters in The Hague during the investigation. They worked with European Union member states and Europol to gather intelligence, share information, analyze data and support investigators in the field.
After years of joint investigation, authorities seized more than 43 tonnes of cocaine in 13 major operations between 2022 and 2026, including Operation CANTABRIA. Some of the seizures were detected through Sky ECC data.
In December 2020, Dutch authorities intercepted two banana container shipments from Ecuador holding nearly 4 tonnes of cocaine. A few months later, Ecuadorian law enforcement stopped a shipment of more than 2 tonnes bound for Belgian ports. In 2023 and 2024 alone, authorities seized more than 35 tonnes, including a record 13-tonne seizure in Spain.
The operation received support from EL PACCTO 2.0, the EU’s cooperation program with Latin America and the Caribbean against transnational organized crime.
