A U.S. task force has intercepted and sunk its fifth floating refueling station linked to Ecuador’s Los Choneros gang in less than a week, according to the U.S. military.
The latest operation took place in the eastern Pacific on Monday, where Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere found a vessel supporting at-sea drug-trafficking operations.
U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) said intelligence linked the vessel to Los Choneros, which U.S. authorities describe as a violent narco-terrorist organization.
U.S. forces boarded and cleared the vessel before removing the crew, who will be transferred to Ecuadorian authorities. The vessel was then sunk.
The operation is the fifth similar interdiction since a U.S. task force sank another Los Choneros-linked refueling station last week.
The floating stations are used to provide fuel and other logistical support to drug-trafficking vessels operating far from shore.
Los Choneros is one of two Ecuadorian gangs, along with Los Lobos, designated by the United States as Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
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