Banana Companies Associated with Drug Trafficking in Ecuador

Quito, Sept 1(Prensa Latina) The National Police of Ecuador detected 56 banana exporting companies involved in drug trafficking, as reported Thursday by Ecuavisa channel.

According to a report by the institution, the drug shipments are hidden in containers leaving the Andean nation's maritime ports, mainly to European countries.

The authorities did not reveal the identity of the owners or the names of the legally constituted companies, however, they detailed that behind these business groups are Albanian citizens who entered Ecuador in 2009 under the guise of investors to buy or create companies.

This Thursday, the National Anti-Drug Investigation Directorate asked the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock to suspend the export licenses of the companies that are repeat offenders in the narcotics cases.

The boom of these illegal activities in Ecuador , among other things, is due to the nation's geographical position, right between Colombia and Peru, two of the world's main cocaine producers, and for having ports considered functional for drug trafficking.

The other factor that makes this South American country an ideal scenario for the trafficking of illicit substances is the scarce social investment, which encourages many young people to join the mafias in search of income, say analysts. (Source:PL)