National Gendarmerie agents arrested five people who were attempting to transport cocaine base paste camouflaged in cans of mackerel while traveling on a bus in Santiago del Estero. The operation was carried out by officers from the 'Pinto' Traffic Security Section who discovered the illicit merchandise during a routine inspection of a 'Shopping Tour' in the town of Real Sayana.
The agents from Squadron 59 'Santiago del Estero' were conducting prevention and road safety tasks when they stopped a bus at kilometer 538 of National Route number 34. During the inspection, they found two polyethylene bags in the vehicle's cargo hold that were not registered to any passenger and contained 23 cans of mackerel with tomato sauce of different weights.
Due to the irregularities in the packaging, the gendarmes decided to examine the cans and discovered a compact yellowish substance inside. After conducting preliminary narcotest investigations, it was confirmed to be cocaine base paste. The Federal Court number 1 of Santiago del Estero ordered the seizure of the 12.424 kilos of the substance found on the bus, as well as the detention and isolation of the five adult suspects involved in the smuggling attempt.
