Forces from the United States Southern Command have once again targeted the logistical infrastructure of drug trafficking in the Eastern Pacific by intercepting and sinking on Monday a supposed floating replenishment station linked to Los Choneros, marking the fourth operation of this kind in less than two weeks.
The Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere (JTF-WHEM), under the direction of SOUTHCOM, boarded the vessel, evacuated the crew, and searched it before sinking it.
The individuals found on board were handed over to Ecuadorian authorities, the post states.
"The intelligence confirmed the connection of the vessel with the violent narcoterrorist organization Los Choneros," SOUTHCOM stated in its announcement. "After boarding the ship and disembarking the crew, U.S. forces sank it."
SOUTHCOM emphasized that JTF-WHEM "continues to carry out precise and professional operations to dismantle the logistical networks that fuel drug trafficking in the Western Hemisphere."
This action adds to a series of strikes conducted in rapid succession. On September 5, the same task force had sunk another multi-vessel floating station also linked to Los Choneros, destroying both the main vessel and the support boats.
One day earlier, forces deployed from the USS San Antonio had sunk a drug boat from the same organization. The first operation in the series had taken place on August 28.
Floating resupply stations are critical logistical infrastructure for maritime drug trafficking: they allow speedboats to refuel at sea without the need to approach ports, thereby extending their operational range and reducing the risk of detection.
All these operations fall under the American Coalition Against the Cartels (A3C) and JTF-WHEM, initiatives that have intensified the U.S. military presence in the Eastern Pacific since mid-2026. The USS San Antonio arrived at the Ecuadorian port of Manta on August 24 as part of that deployment.
Los Choneros is a criminal organization that emerged in the late 1990s in Chone, Manabí province, and has become one of the most powerful gangs in Ecuador. It has documented ties to the Sinaloa Cartel and CJNG, and operates cocaine routes to Mexico, the United States, and Europe.
The Ecuadorian government under President Daniel Noboa declared them a terrorist organization in January 2024, amid the declaration of an internal armed conflict in Ecuador following a wave of violence that included the assault on a live television channel. The U.S. Department of State formalized that designation in September 2025, categorizing them as a foreign terrorist organization.
Ecuador has publicly supported sinking operations as joint anti-drug actions, according to Al Jazeera.
The most well-known leader of the group, José Adolfo Macías Villamar, alias "Fito," was recaptured in Ecuador in June 2025 and extradited to the United States in July of that year to face federal charges for drug trafficking, arms trafficking, and organized crime, although the organization has continued its operational activity in the Pacific.
Filed under: