50 U.S. Troops and the DEA Back Ecuador Raids That Net 30+ Suspects in a Network Tied to Mexico’s CJNG, Accused of Shipping Colombian Cocaine to the U.S.
More than 30 people were arrested Thursday in early-morning raids across three Ecuadorian provinces. Authorities say the network they targeted was directly linked to Mexico’s Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), and about 50 U.S. Southern Command personnel took part, UPI and CBS News/AFP reported on Sept. 24, 2026.
What happened
More than 320 Ecuadorian police officers and 50 U.S. Southern Command personnel took part in the raids in the provinces of Guayas, Los Ríos and El Oro, according to Ecuadorian authorities cited by UPI. The Drug Enforcement Administration also supported the operation. Interior Minister John Reimberg said it “was conducted jointly with U.S. troops and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA),” and that those arrested had a “direct connection to the CJNG,” CBS News/AFP reported.
Suspected leaders and financiers of the network were among those arrested, UPI reported. They included an alleged leader detained in the exclusive Isla Mocolí area of Samborondón. Authorities said Thursday morning that the operation was still underway. Neither report named any of the people arrested.
The alleged cocaine route to the U.S.
An eight-month investigation identified a network that allegedly received drugs from Colombia, then stored and moved the shipments through Ecuador before sending them by sea to Central America, the United States and Europe, according to UPI. Reimberg said the group used ports in Guayaquil and Machala. Authorities said seizures made during the investigation were worth an estimated $322 million to the organization, UPI reported. The reports did not say what was seized or where.
Noboa: “No state can confront alone an enemy that crosses borders”
The raids came less than a day after President Daniel Noboa urged more international cooperation against organized crime in a speech to the U.N. General Assembly. “Today, under the direction of the National Police and with the support of the DEA and Southern Command, we dismantled a structure linked to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and arrested more than 30 people,” Noboa wrote on X, according to UPI.
A day earlier, Ecuadorian forces carried out a separate operation against the Los Choneros gang. Noboa said that operation killed a man known as “Charlie,” whom his government described as a logistics and finance operator for international drug trafficking networks, UPI reported. After that operation, Southern Command commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan praised Ecuador’s forces. CBS News/AFP noted that human rights groups have raised concerns about excessive force and torture during Ecuador’s military campaign against criminal groups.
None of the people arrested has been publicly charged or convicted in the reports cited here. They are presumed innocent.
Sources
- UPI, “Ecuador, U.S. target cartel-linked drug network, arrest 30,” Sept. 24, 2026
- CBS News/AFP, “U.S. troops help Ecuador arrest dozens linked to notorious Mexican cartel,” Sept. 24, 2026
This report is based on UPI and CBS News/AFP coverage as of Sept. 24, 2026, which relies on statements by Ecuadorian officials. The Narco Blog has not independently confirmed the CJNG link, the identities of those arrested or the $322 million estimate. A U.S. Embassy in Ecuador statement on the operation could not be accessed for this report.