Unmanned "narco-sub" seized in Caribbean Sea off Colombia

A submersible vessel allegedly used for transporting illegal narcotics has been seized in the Caribbean Sea off the northern coast of Colombia, officials of the Colombian Navy told reporters earlier this week.

The so-called "narco-sub" was not carrying any illicit cargo and had no personnel on board at the time of its seizure off the coast of Santa Marta.

However, AFP has quoted a navy spokeswoman as saying that a cocaine trafficking cartel was conducting a trial run of the craft when it was intercepted by local authorities.

The spokeswoman said that the submersible was equipped with a satellite antenna near the bow and that the navy is still studying whether this feature had allowed the craft to be operated even without an embarked crew.

In a separate press conference, Admiral Juan Ricardo Rozo, Chief of the Colombian Navy, confirmed that the seizure was the first reported sighting of a "drone" narco-sub in South American waters.