Ecuadorian caught smuggling explosives into Colombia

Bogota, Agency
Colombian authorities detained an Ecuadorian man who crossed the border with 25 kilos (55 pounds) of explosives officials say were meant for the small ELN rebel group.

The smuggler, Antonio Peña Perugachi, was arrested in Tuquerres, a village in the southern border province of Nariño.

He was carrying 50 packets of pentolite, a high-power explosive, destined for a unit of the National Liberation Army, or ELN, police said in a communique.

Colombian officials say they have detected more than a score of arms-smuggling corridors along the length of their country's 586-kilometer (364-mile) border with Ecuador.

Besides the ELN, recipients of smuggled weapons and munitions include the much larger FARC guerrilla group, right-wing militias and elements of organized crime.