How do drug traffickers move shipments from Venezuela through the Caribbean to reach US ports and coasts?
Executive summary
Traffickers move cocaine and other drugs from Venezuela via a mix of maritime, island-hub, and overland networks that then link into Caribbean and Pacific corridors toward the United States and Europe; U.S. and other reporting estimates put hundreds of metric tons transiting Venezuela annually — for example, a 2020 U.S. estimate cited by WOLA put flows through Venezuela at 200–250 metric tons per year [1]. Recent U.S. military action in the Caribbean has focused on fast boats and island departure points such as Margarita Island and Sucre state, with the U.S. claiming dozens of maritime strikes and more than 80 fatalities as of November 2025 [2] [3] [4].
1. How shipments typically start: production zone to Venezuelan coast
Cocaine largely originates in Andean production zones, then is moved to coastal transshipment points; multiple analyses and U.S. reports show Venezuela functioning as a transit route rather than the primary origin, with traffickers exploiting weak oversight, coastal airstrips, and militarized governance to move loads to the coast [5] [6] [1]. Investigations and regional reporting identify Venezuelan islands and eastern coastal states as springboards for maritime departures to the Caribbean and Europe [2] [1].
2. The maritime toolkit: fast boats, go-fasts and mother ships
Traffickers use a variety of vessels: fast speedboats (“go-fasts”) for short, rapid runs between Venezuelan shores and nearby islands or directly toward Caribbean destinations, plus larger fishing or cargo vessels to carry bulk loads farther afield. U.S. strikes have predominantly targeted small fast boats in international waters, which the administration says were carrying drugs [3] [7]. Fact-checking and expert sources note that maritime movement of fentanyl by sea is rare and that most fentanyl entering the U.S. originates in Mexico — but cocaine by sea from South America has long been documented [5] [1].
3. Island hubs and relay points: Margarita Island, Trinidad & northeast Caribbean
Islands such as Margarita have been singled out as strategic hubs and “springboards” for shipments to the Caribbean, Central America and Europe; arrests of foreign nationals and seizures indicate the island’s continued role as a transshipment node even if it lacks domination by a single organized crime group [2]. The Caribbean island chain allows traffickers to break voyages into shorter legs, refuel or transfer packages, and exploit jurisdictional gaps between nations [2] [1].
4. Overland and air complements: clandestine airstrips and regional land corridors
Maritime routes are complemented by clandestine air flights, small cargo aircraft, and overland corridors through neighboring states; U.S. and NGO reporting stress that Venezuela is part of a broader web linking Andean producers to maritime and overland export routes — though UNODC mapping indicates the main flows to North America still originate in the Andean countries and favor Pacific or western Caribbean routes [6] [1]. U.S. reporting has also alleged use of military facilities and ports as part of trafficking nodes, claims that feature in the administration’s targeting rationale [8].
5. Enforcement responses and the consequences of hard-line tactics
Since September 2025 the U.S. has carried out lethal strikes on dozens of vessels in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific, which the administration says target “narco-terrorists” and have killed scores of people; these actions have provoked legal, political and human-rights scrutiny from other governments, media and watchdogs [7] [3] [4]. Critics argue the strikes may be counterproductive — killing low-level operators without dismantling resilient networks and risking civilian lives — while proponents say military pressure can disrupt revenue streams that sustain corrupt actors [4] [8].
6. Disagreement over scale, role of Venezuela, and drug types
Sources dispute how central Venezuela is to U.S.-bound flows and whether recent strikes address the right targets. U.S. officials and some reporting assert Venezuela is a preferred transit route responsible for large shipments [8] [1]; UNODC and other analysts say the primary trafficking flows to North America originate in Andean states and are not primarily routed through Venezuelan ports [6]. Additionally, experts and FactCheck.org note that claims of fentanyl being shipped by sea from Venezuela are unlikely, with Mexico identified as the main fentanyl source [5].
7. What remains unclear and reporting limitations
Available sources do not mention detailed step-by-step operational tradecraft for specific traffickers (e.g., encryption methods, exact transfer points), and U.S. public evidence linking particular Venezuelan government officials to trafficking remains contested or not fully publicized in the cited reporting [7] [5]. Congress, international bodies, and investigative outlets are probing the legality and effectiveness of recent military strikes, underscoring gaps in public evidence and accountability [9] [3].
Contextual takeaway: traffickers exploit a patchwork of maritime, island, air and land routes that link Andean production to global markets; the debate now is whether lethal maritime strikes — focused on fast boats and coastal hubs — actually disrupt those flows or simply displace them, a question on which major sources and experts disagree [4] [6] [1].