Dominican Republic. Record-breaking cocaine seizures in the Dominican Republic highlight the resurgence of the Caribbean as a major trafficking route to Europe amid unprecedented cocaine production in Colombia.
Over 30 tons of cocaine have been seized in the Dominican Republic so far this year, surpassing the 18 tons confiscated in 2023 and the previous record of 27.7 tons set in 2022. This represents a dramatic increase in drug interdictions, with cocaine seizures rising fivefold between 2019 and 2024.
On November 9, the Dominican Republic’s National Drug Control Directorate (Dirección Nacional de Control de Drogas – DNCD), carried out the country’s second-largest cocaine seizure, intercepting 2.2 tons of the drug.
The cocaine, shipped from Panama and destined for the Port of Antwerp in Belgium, was discovered in a container at the Port of Caucedo near the capital, Santo Domingo.
SEE ALSO: Central America Primed for Coca Expansion, Study Finds
On September 12, US and UK forces intercepted a narco semi-submersible in Dominican waters carrying 2 tons of cocaine. This marked the first seizure of such a vessel in the Caribbean since 2020.
Cocaine seizures have surged across the Caribbean in recent months. By July of this year, 15 tons of cocaine were confiscated in the French Caribbean, surpassing the 11 tons intercepted throughout all of 2023.
The Caribbean route was once a major corridor for cocaine trafficking to the United States. In the 1980s, an estimated 75% of all US-bound cocaine transited the Caribbean. Use of the route, however, declined significantly following intensified US anti-narcotics efforts.
SEE ALSO: The State of Emergency Strategy: Why Latin American Leaders Keep Turning to It
InSight Crime Analysis
Increasing seizures in the Dominican Republic highlight traffickers’ renewed use of the Caribbean to move cocaine to Europe.
One key factor behind the resurgence of the Caribbean route is the record-high cocaine production in Colombia, bolstering outflows of the drug from South America toward consumer markets like Europe.
At the same time, cocaine consumption in Europe continues to rise. Wastewater studies – which take samples of wastewater to estimate drug usage in a given population – reveal that cocaine use in major European cities and towns has more than doubled from 2011 to 2023.
As demand grows, traffickers are ramping up efforts to meet it, turning to the Caribbean as an ideal conduit for smuggling cocaine to Europe.
The Dominican Republic has long been a key transit point for cocaine, serving as a regional trading hub for container shipping. Its large air and seaports offer traffickers extensive opportunities to move drugs onto the global market.
