The Caribbean was a key transit zone for [[cocaine]] shipments moving from [[South America]] through the [[Bahamas]], [[Panama]], and [[Costa Rica]] to the [[United States]] during the Contra war. The region's geography, with its numerous islands and porous coastlines, made it ideal for drug smuggling operations.[^1] ### Trafficking Routes [[Manuel Noriega|Noriega]]'s pilots flew drugs through two routes north: one through [[Mexico]] for the West Coast market, and the other through the Bahamas for the East Coast's cocaine buyers. [[Pablo Escobar]]'s associate Carlos Lehder set up shop in the Bahamas, buying an island where drug planes from [[Colombia]] could land, refuel, and wait for the right moment to fly into the United States. The Caribbean transit zone was integral to the Contra-connected drug pipeline.[^2] ### Footnotes [^1]: Gary Webb, *Dark Alliance*, Ch. 5. [^2]: Gary Webb, *Dark Alliance*, Ch. 5, Ch. 14.