Guatemala destroys $780 mn in opium poppies, marijuana

Guatemala City, Feb 5 (EFE).- Guatemalan police and soldiers, with support from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, destroyed $780 million worth of opium poppies and marijuana plants during a four-day operation in the western province of San Marcos, authorities said Friday.

The spokesman for the PNC national police force, Donald Gonzalez, said the illicit crops were found in rural areas of the municipalities of Ixiguan and Tajumulco.

"No arrests or incidents were reported, since those responsible for the crops fled," he said.

San Marcos, which borders Mexico, is viewed by drug cartels from the neighboring country as a sanctuary where poppies - the raw material of heroin - can be cultivated in relative safety.

The sweep eradicated 319 million poppies and 250,000 marijuana plants with an estimated street value of 6.47 billion quetzales ($780 million), according to Gonzalez, who called the operation "the biggest blow against drug trafficking in recent months."

Support for the effort was provided by the DEA office at the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala City.

Last year, the Guatemalan security forces eradicated more than 692 million opium poppies valued at $1.66 billion, officials say.