The narco monkey found on a boat with suspected cocaine will be evaluated at the National Zoo of the Dominican Republic

The white-faced capuchin monkey was taken in by the Ministry of Environment after being found on a boat intercepted with alleged cocaine. (Image courtesy) The white-faced capuchin monkey, found on Sunday, October 4, on a speedboat intercepted with alleged cocaine off Punta Salinas, in Baní, was handed over to the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources of the Dominican Republic for protection, evaluation, and recovery. The animal had reportedly entered illegally from Colombia during the early morning hours of that day. The National Drug Control Directorate seized two vessels during a simultaneous operation south of Punta Salinas, in Peravia province. The operation ended with four Dominican citizens detained and 749 packages of a substance presumed to be cocaine, El Nacional reported. The first speedboat was carrying two men and 10 bales containing 281 packages wrapped with adhesive tape and marked with different logos. During the inspection of that vessel, agents found the specimen of Cebus capucinus, a species known as the white-faced capuchin monkey. The president of the National Drug Control Directorate, Vice Admiral José Manuel Cabrera Ulloa, ordered the animal's transfer to be coordinated with the Ministry of Environment's Biodiversity Directorate. Before its handover, the DNCD's operational teams provided it with initial care. The National Drug Control Directorate arrested four Dominicans and seized 749 packages of substances in Punta Salinas. (Image courtesy) The monkey was taken to the Arquitecto Manuel Valverde Podestá National Zoological Park, where veterinarians will assess its health. Based on that diagnosis, authorities will determine the measures for its handling, recovery, and subsequent placement in accordance with wildlife protocols. The intervention was carried out under General Law on Environment and Natural Resources No. 64-00 and Sectoral Law on Biodiversity No. 333-15. Both regulations govern the protection, possession, transport, importation, and trade of wild species, as well as the permits and controls for their movement. In the second operation, carried out in the same maritime area, units stopped another speedboat with two Dominicans on board. There, they seized 20 bales containing 468 packages of the substance. Anti-narcotics agents coordinated the deployment with the Air Force, the Dominican Navy, and the U.S. DEA. (Photo courtesy of the Embassy of the United States) The deployment brought together agents from the DNCD, the Dominican Republic Navy, and the Dominican Republic Air Force, under the coordination of the Public Prosecutor's Office. State intelligence agencies, the Southern Interagency Task Force, and the United States Drug Enforcement Administration also participated. The Ministry of Environment noted that coordination with security and border control institutions makes it possible to detect cases of illegal species trafficking. These practices threaten biodiversity, violate national and international wildlife protection standards, and expose animals to inadequate handling conditions. The DNCD indicated that the 749 packages were placed under chain of custody and sent to the National Institute of Forensic Sciences (Inacif), the agency in charge of official forensic analysis. That agency must determine the type of substance and the exact weight of the shipment. The Public Prosecutor's Office and the DNCD have an open investigation to identify other individuals allegedly linked to the operation. Authorities maintain that these structures use speedboats to transport drug shipments from South America to Dominican territory by sea.