Carabineros officers at the Alemania checkpoint (Retén Alemania) on Route 5 Norte in Taltal stopped a three-quarter truck heading south around 6:30 in the morning on Tuesday 3 November 2026 and found marijuana in its cargo area.[1] Un total de 2.066 kilos de marihuana incautaron efectivos de Carabineros y la Fiscalía de Taltal durante un procedimiento realizado el martes 3 de noviembre en la Ruta 5 Norte, en la Región de Antofagasta.[2][3] The officers found 98 sacks holding 1,133 packages of the substance and told the duty prosecutor, who sent Carabineros’ OS7 anti-drug unit to the scene.[2][3]

Field tests confirmed the substance was marijuana, and the driver was detained.[1][3] By order of the prosecutor’s office the driver’s detention was extended until 6 November, according to the local outlet Antofagasta Al Día.[4]

Carabineros valued the load at 12.4 billion pesos on the illicit market, equivalent to about 4.1 million doses.[1][3] The regional prosecutor for Antofagasta, Juan Castro Bekios, said the result came from a chain of duties in which “nobody is the protagonist; everyone is indispensable”.[1] The regional prosecutor confirmed that the investigation was continuing.[1] General Cristian Montre Soto, head of the Carabineros Antofagasta zone, said other members of the criminal organisation were being identified and that further arrests were expected soon.[2]

The prosecutor’s office said the region had recorded 133 tonnes of drug seizures between 10 October 2023 and 4 November 2026, with 62 tonnes of marijuana seized in 2026 alone.[1]