Chiefs of Police in Central America, Mexico, the Caribbean and Colombia review today in Managua the capital joint plans to combat violence caused by drug trafficking and transnational crime.

According to reports, the military institutions hope to adopt a common strategy to deal in a coordinated way with widespread phenomena like human trafficking, illegal trafficking of drugs and money laundering.

The general director of the Nicaraguan police, First Commissioner Aminta Granera, recently confirmed that the meeting’s purpose is the establishment of a system of “red alerts” in order to facilitate the capture of criminals, in coordination with the International Police Organization Criminologist ( Interpol).

Transnational crime must sense it is up against a wall, from Mexico to Colombia, including the Caribbean, “with a single fist, with one goal, one action”, she said.

In late July, the regional event held in Managua moved ahead on arrangements to design a system of circulated red alerts to allow simultaneous tracking in the region.

Headquartered at the Hotel Barceló, the meeting will take place while a police court in the capital is holding a public trial against 24 alleged members of a network trafficking and laundering money for drug cartels in Mexico and Colombia.

International assessments place Central America among the most insecure areas of the planet due to drug activity, with the disadvantage of being sandwiched between the world’s largest drug market to the the north, in the U.S., and drug producers in the southern part of the continent.

In this context, Nicaragua’s specialized agencies are distiguished for their combination of anti-drug operations with social programs that reduce crime.

The police and army in this country alone seized 12 tons of drugs last year, according to official figures.

Source: Prensa Latina