In one of the laboratories, 1,250 gallons of liquid potassium permanganate, an essential chemical in the production of cocaine hydrochloride, were found by troops.
The Colombian Navy, in joint operations with the Colombian Army, the Colombian Air Force and coordinated with the National Police, found and destroyed 20 laboratories used for the production of coca base paste, severely damaging the first link in the production of narcotics in the south of the country.
In the course of the operations carried out in the departments of Meta, Caquetá, Putumayo and Guaviare, 2,099 kilograms of solid precursors, 1,979 gallons of liquid precursors, 534 kilograms of macerated coca leaf and 59 kilograms of coca base paste were found by troops in process, in addition to hoses, containers and items used in the process of cocaine production by Organized Armed Groups that commit crimes in the region.
One of these laboratories in the municipality of Aguas Negras, municipality of Puerto Asís (Putumayo), was built exclusively for the production of solid potassium permanganate, a substance used by criminal groups to crystallize cocaine hydrochloride. At the site, 250 barrels containing 1,250 gallons of liquid potassium permanganate, equivalent to 7,096 kilograms of this substance, were found by troops.
Thanks to information provided by the Colombian Navy, it was possible to establish that the residual Organized Armed Groups are carrying out the process of transforming this liquid substance into solid in structures known as laboratories, to evade the controls of the authorities, facilitating the trafficking of this controlled substance.
The structures and the solid and liquid precursors were destroyed under controlled conditions at the scene, following environmental standards for the preservation and care of the environment. No arrests were made during the operations.
