The Urabeños mafia has been identified by local authorities as the largest and most feared crime organization in Colombia. After a series of massive busts, thanks in large part to a drug sniffing dog, the gang has put a bounty of $70,000 (200 million pesos) on the head of Colombian narcotics dog Sombra.
Sombra, a german shepherd who’s name translates to shadow in English, has led to over 245 arrests as well as the seizing of 10 tons of cocaine during the course of multiple discoveries. Currently Sombra is being moved to a safer location in fear of retaliation. Here are more details from the Washington Post.
According to Colombia’s RCN Radio, police intelligence recently learned about the bounty set by the Urabeños, also known as the Gulf Clan. Reports vary on the price tag for killing the dog, between 20 and 200 million Colombian pesos — or about $7,000 and $70,000 in U.S. currency. But the threat is serious enough for the National Police to take extra precautions for Sombra’s security.
“The fact they want to hurt Sombra and offer such a high reward for her capture or death shows the impact she’s had on their profits,” a police representative told the Telegraph. Sombra came to Colombian law enforcement from a kennel in Antioquia, the region of the country that’s home to the city of Medellin, the springboard for Colombia’s fearsome cartels of the 1980s and 1990s. Outfitted in a neon-yellow vest, the dog is tasked with thrusting her trained snout into luggage and packages in Colombia’s ports and airports along the country’s Gulf Coast.
RCN Radio reports her first major bust was in March 2016, when Sombra nosed her way toward a container of banana boxes that secretly held 2,958 kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride. The shipment was on its way to Belgium. In May 2017, Sombra discovered another shipment heading to Belgium containing 1.1 tons of cocaine. Last June, she led police to an even larger find — 5.3 tons of cocaine, the BBC reported. Later, she discovered four more tons secreted in an auto parts shipment. In total, her busts have resulted in 245 arrests, Colonel Carlos Fernando Villareal told RCN Radio. Sombra’s efforts for law enforcement have twice earned her the Wilson Quintero medal, an honor awarded for critical contributions to the fight against drug trafficking.
Not all heroes wear capes, Colombian law enforcement should be issuing Sombra a full max level deal for this level of production. The 6-year old has taken on folk hero status with her own twitter page and is featured locally in newspapers and on television.
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