Prosecutors file preventive detention request in Operation Panthera 7 case

Santo Domingo.- The Public Prosecutor’s Office has requested 18 months of preventive detention for individuals implicated in Operation Panthera 7, a high-profile case involving the seizure of 9.8 tons of cocaine at the Caucedo Multimodal Port in December 2024. Prosecutors have also sought to declare the case complex, citing its extensive scope and international ties.

Among the defendants are José Nicolás Castillo Hart (a.k.a. “Nikito”), Winston Armando Tejera Rodríguez (a.k.a. “Barbikin”), Cristian Rayner Canela Aybar, Nelson Neftalí Mercedes Lugo, Dulvi Jesús De los Santos, Enriquillo Luis Brito, and Enrique José Luis Brito. The accused are alleged members of an international drug trafficking and money laundering network dismantled through a joint operation by Dominican authorities, the National Drug Control Directorate (DNCD), and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

The operation, involving 89 prosecutors and 564 special forces agents, resulted in the confiscation of over 22 million pesos and dollars in cash, 20 light vehicles, 10 heavy vehicles, 10 containers, firearms, and other assets. Authorities linked the cocaine shipment to routes originating in Colombia and entering the Dominican Republic via Bayahibe, La Romana, and Pedernales. The defendants face charges under the Dominican Penal Code, narcotics laws, and regulations on arms control and money laundering.