Politics

Did Trump’s Caribbean Strike Target a Fisherman or a Drug Smuggler? New Details Emerge

Ecuadorian fisherman survived a US strike on a “drug sub.” Family denies his criminal ties; he was previously convicted.

byEditorial Staff

October 22, 2025, 11:26 PM

Donald Trump points forward while meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu

U.S. President Donald Trump points forward during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in Washington D.C. on April 7, 2025. By noamgalai / Shutterstock.com.

Executive Summary

Andrés Fernando Tufiño Chila, an Ecuadorian fisherman with a prior US drug smuggling conviction, survived a US military strike on a “drug-carrying submarine” in the Caribbean, an incident President Trump labeled as targeting “terrorists.”

The strike on Tufiño Chila’s vessel is part of an expanded US military campaign against suspected drug-smuggling vessels, which has resulted in at least 34 deaths, primarily in the Caribbean, since early September.

Ecuador is a major transit route for cocaine, with severe poverty driving fishermen to engage in drug running, while critics question the Trump administration’s rationale for the strikes, noting most US overdose deaths are from fentanyl and the campaign often targets low-level couriers.

The Story So Far

The events described occur within the context of Ecuador’s significant role as a transit route for approximately 70% of the world’s cocaine supply from Colombia and Peru, where severe economic hardship compels local fishermen, earning as little as $100 monthly, to engage in drug transport for substantially higher payments. This situation is further complicated by an expanded US military campaign, initiated by President Trump, targeting suspected drug-smuggling vessels, which the administration asserts is aimed at saving American lives from drug overdoses, despite data indicating most US overdose deaths are linked to fentanyl smuggled by land, not cocaine by sea.

Why This Matters

The intensified US military campaign against drug-carrying vessels, advocated by President Trump, is escalating the human cost, frequently impacting impoverished individuals like Ecuadorian fishermen driven by economic desperation, rather than major cartel figures. This approach raises significant questions about its efficacy in tackling the primary drivers of US overdose deaths, which largely stem from fentanyl smuggled by land, and underscores the complex socio-economic realities in transit nations that push vulnerable populations into illicit activities.

Who Thinks What?

President Trump describes the targeted vessels as “drug-carrying submarines” and survivors as “terrorists,” asserting that these US military strikes are aimed at saving American lives from drug overdoses.

Andrés Fernando Tufiño Chila’s family maintains he is a desperate father struggling to provide for his children, caught in the crossfire of the US anti-drug campaign, despite his prior drug smuggling conviction.

Critics argue that those caught in the crossfire of these US strikes are primarily “expendable” fishermen rather than cartel leaders, and that the campaign’s focus on cocaine via sea does not address the main cause of US overdose deaths, which is fentanyl smuggled by land.

Andrés Fernando Tufiño Chila, a 41-year-old Ecuadorian fisherman, survived a US military strike last week on what President Trump described as a “drug-carrying submarine” in the Caribbean. While Trump labeled the survivors “terrorists,” Tufiño Chila’s family maintains he is a desperate father caught in the crossfire of the US anti-drug campaign, despite his prior US conviction for drug smuggling in 2020.

Incident Details and Family Account

Tufiño Chila was one of two survivors of the strike, which also resulted in two fatalities. He and the other survivor were subsequently returned by the US to their countries of origin. His sister, who requested anonymity for safety, told CNN that she last heard from him about a year ago when he left to fish for work.

She vehemently denied her brother was a criminal, portraying him as a man striving to provide for his six children, even after his wife left with them. Ecuadorian authorities stated on Monday they have no information indicating Tufiño Chila committed a crime on Ecuadorian territory since his return.

However, court documents reveal Tufiño Chila was arrested, convicted, and jailed in the US in 2020 for smuggling drugs off Mexico’s coast before being deported. His sister also disclosed that two other brothers were arrested months earlier on similar drug smuggling charges, one currently in US custody and the other in Ecuador.

Ecuador’s Role in Drug Trafficking

The Tufiño Chila family’s experiences underscore Ecuador’s critical position as a transit route in the global cocaine trade. Ecuador’s president has stated that approximately 70% of the world’s cocaine supply from Colombia and Peru passes through its shores.

Drug runners frequently use a vast stretch of the Pacific Ocean to transport narcotics, often dropping them off in Mexico for subsequent smuggling into the United States or Europe. In Tufiño Chila’s coastal town, the allure of drug running is strong due to the severe financial struggles of fishermen, whose monthly wages can be as low as $100, contrasting sharply with the tens of thousands of dollars offered for drug transport.

US Military Campaign Escalates

The incident involving Tufiño Chila is part of an expanded US military campaign targeting suspected drug-smuggling vessels. On Tuesday, the US military conducted its eighth known strike since early September, hitting a vessel in the eastern Pacific, which resulted in the deaths of both individuals onboard, according to US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.

All seven previous strikes had occurred in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela. To date, these US military operations have resulted in at least 34 deaths, with 32 occurring in the Caribbean.

Rationale and Realities of the Campaign

The Trump administration asserts these strikes are aimed at saving American lives from drug overdoses. However, data indicates that the majority of US overdose deaths stem from fentanyl, primarily produced in Mexico and smuggled across the US border by land, often by US citizens, rather than from cocaine.

Critics argue that those caught in the crossfire of these US strikes are rarely cartel leaders, but rather fishermen deemed expendable by the gangs that employ them. Tufiño Chila’s sister continues to hope for contact with her brother, finding solace in his survival.