Cartels Using ‘Cocaine Cow’ Ships to Smuggle Drugs Across Atlantic
So you’ve heard of cocaine bear. But have you heard of cocaine cow? No, it’s not a bizarre new thriller. According to experts, cartels have long used cattle-carrying ships to smuggle drugs across the Atlantic. Why? Because authorities rarely search ships if doing so requires offloading 10,000 cows first.
An intelligence analyst for Europe’s MAOC-N agency admits the cartels are “very professional and they know exactly what they can take advantage of.” They told The Telegraph, “Logistically, the countries don’t like to do inspections on board these vessels. The bad guys, they know this and that’s why they are using it.”
Outlets such as The Sun claim another tactic is mixing diseased or dying cows into the herd. Carcasses on the deck make it harder for authorities to navigate and search the boat. They also confuse drug-sniffing dogs. “You would not want to spend more than one minute on one of these vessels, you can only imagine the smell.”
Experts believe one of these vessels loaded with beef cattle leaves South America every week. They may stretch up to 200 meters long and carry as many as 10,000 cows. Most start their journey in gang-run ports such as Cartagena, Colombia, or Santos or Belem in Brazil. Their flags usually belong to countries with lax maritime regulations, including Panama and Tanzania. The ships stop in South American or Caribbean ports to stash drugs in hiding places such as grain silos. Then they sail east.
Why the cattle ships rarely get stopped
The real genius of the operation is that these ships rarely sail to Europe. They take their cattle straight to the Middle East, offloading them in places such as Beirut, Lebanon, or Damietta, Egypt. With less strict livestock rules, they can usually offload their beef.
But the real cargo—the cocaine and other drugs—is offloaded off the coast of Europe. The sailors toss floating packages overboard, each with a GPS device. Their accomplices sail out from Europe and recover the drugs to smuggle them into cities such as Antwerp and Rotterdam.
Because the cattle ships only pass through, European authorities rarely bother with them. The only major bust came on Jan. 24, 2023. Spanish officers nabbed the 100-meter Orion V off the Canary Islands on its trip from Colombia to Lebanon. Hidden in the feed for its 1,750 cows, it carried 9,920 pounds of cocaine.
