Ecuador seizes 98 foot drug-smuggling sub

By the CNN Wire Staff, July 3, 2010 7:38 p.m. EDT

(CNN) -- A fully functional submarine built for the primary purpose of transporting huge amounts of cocaine has been seized by Ecuadorean authorities with the help of U.S. drug enforcement agents.

A drug-trafficking organization built the sea-worthy vessel that is now being held near the border of Ecuador and Colombia. One individual has been taken into custody, authorities said.

"This is the first seizure of a clandestinely constructed fully operational submarine built for trans-oceanic drug trafficking," the Drug Enforcement Administration said in a statement.

The vessel utilized twin screws and was diesel electric-powered, the agency said. It was about 30 meters (98 feet) long and nearly 3 meters (nine feet) high from the deck plates to the ceiling. It has a periscope and an air-conditioning system.

See the rest of the story at: http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/07/03/ecuador.drug.submarine/index.html?hpt=C1

Subscribe to the Rightardia feed: feeds.feedburner.com/blogspot/IGiu

Netcraft rank: 15638 http://toolbar.netcraft.com/site_report?url=http://rightardia.blogspot.com