Drug traffickers using the Dominican Republic for their operations have opted for transferring drugs by sea as a strategy for evading the reinforced airspace vigilance. Drug traffickers are gradually abandoning the traditional practice of using small airplanes and turned to luxury yachts and cargo containers that leave Dominican seaports. The greatest number of seizures of illegal drugs is now being registered at these locations, especially cocaine from Venezuela and Colombia.
So far this month, the Dominican authorities, assisted by the United States Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) have seized 2,760 kilograms of cocaine within the framework of Operation Seawall. One of the seizures took place on 9 January when DEA and the US Coast Guard officers detected a suspicious launch in the Bay of Ocoa. The craft was found to have 1,500 kilograms of cocaine on board. This is in addition to other major hauls, such as the 900 kilos seized on 13 January, a Sunday, after an intense pursuit of a launch which involved the intervention of two Dominican Air Force Super Tucano aircraft, Navy ships and a National Drug Control Agency (DNCD) helicopter.