Tensions at Havana airport are revived in the series ¡Alto! frontera

The tension of arriving at a foreign country's airport is latent; it's a natural and strange sensation that always occurs before going through immigration and that lessens when you're one step away from the airport exit. In this context, the A&E channel just premiered new episodes of ¡Alto! Frontera¡ on June 13, which focuses on the work of airport authorities in detecting suspected illicit traffickers.

"In the programs that have been recorded for '¡Alto! Frontera,' apart from the professionalism in editing and the cases, there's also the example of recording a program that we at the United Nations have been doing, like this one, which we've been doing for 15 years and is called AIRCOP," explained the UN project coordinator, Sergio Naranjo.

"These are operational groups at various airports, with a significant amount of activity against international crime, not just drugs, but many types of crimes, such as human trafficking or migrant smuggling, document forgery, arms trafficking, etc. So, from the United Nations, we've been promoting and strengthening these groups and this activity, which we maintain online globally, and in Latin America, of course, it has significant relevance. Episodes have been recorded in Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, and, recently, we've recorded in Cuba, something unprecedented," he emphasizes.

Regarding the most unheard-of cases of illicit trafficking at airports he's seen, Naranjo said, "The concealment methods are incredible and often surprise you." He recalled: " There's even been hidden cocaine—not hidden, but, for example, an electric guitar that was made of cocaine, the guitar itself. It's not that it had cocaine inside, but the very substance in the guitar was cocaine paste, and the guitar even made a sound. In other words, the inventiveness is incredible."

For the creators of ¡Alto Frontera!, there's more to the show than just revealing operations, which airs Fridays at 3 p.m. on A&E. "It's really about being right there where something surprising happens, where there's a human drama because someone loses their freedom, and we see things that appear in movies, but, well, they're real and happen every day. And I think that by spending so much time filming, we can also choose the most interesting and shocking events," says producer Julián Becker.

This new season, which premiered its first episode on June 13, featured a young Bolivian man who must explain a controversial tradition to the authorities, as well as a Russian passenger who presents a dubious passport upon entering the country. On June 20, the case of a young woman trying to bring in products that are severely punishable by law will be revealed.