During 2021, the Colombian Navy has achieved the finding and destruction of 18 dredges used for the illegal extraction of minerals in south-eastern Colombia.
In the course of joint and coordinated operations in the departments of Putumayo and Amazonas, units of the Colombian Army, the Colombian Navy, the Colombian Air Force and the National Police find machinery used for the illicit extraction of mining sites. In the same way, troops have arrested four people, apparently belonging to the Organized Armed Group structure 48 Comandos de Frontera that commits crimes in this region of the country.
In the first operation, carried out on the Putumayo River near the sector known as San Andrés, in the municipality of Puerto Alegría, Amazonas, it was possible to find and subsequently destroy a floating dredge-type device, composed of a wooden structure with a plastic roof, a Diesel-type suction engine, a 40-kilo gas cylinder, four 18-gallon barrels containing DIESEL-type fuel, a battery and 45 grams of mercury.
In the same way, in the municipality La Diana in the municipality of Puerto Asís, Putumayo, it was possible to arrest in flagrante delicto four individuals who were carrying out activities of exploration and illegal exploitation of minerals on the Putumayo River, aboard two dredgers without the respective environmental licenses to carry out this activity, thus violating article 159 of law 658 of 2001.
The boats were destroyed at the scene, finding two containers with substances and characteristics similar to gold, two Diesel engines, 500 meters of PVC pipe, among other materials.
Those arrested and the material found were given to the authorities.
Source: press-National Army
