Betty Jara re-assembles the Yaguarete Commandos to exchange an imprisoned criminal for one of her own agents. A risky operation becomes even more so when she realizes they are not just fighting a drug ring but the highest spheres of power.
“Let’s just give this country to the corrupt, to the drug dealers, to the killers.”
The Last Runway 2 is the International Feature submission for Paraguay. In South America, there’s an area called the Triple Frontier where Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay all share a border. This area has been known to be a transportation hub for drugs entering and leaving South America. The film takes place in Ciudad del Este, the town in Paraguay closest to this region. An undercover agent, Chamorro, has been investigating a major drug operation involving cocaine. While filming and documenting how the drug dealers run their operation, he is kidnapped by the criminal group.
After trying to reach her missing agent for two days, Betty Jara, head of investigations under the Ministry of the Interior, heads to SENAD, the national anti-drug office, in hopes of working together as a team to free Chamorro. Graciela is in charge of the agency, and she gives permission for Betty Jara to pick her team to rescue her kidnapped man. Quickly, she reassembles the Yaguarete Commandos, an elite group of military colleagues, to accomplish the task. But there’s a catch, Graciela tells Betty Jara that they have to do a prisoner exchange. They get Chamorro back but they have to free Dante, a man who murdered one of their own a few years back.
Betty Jara, Chamorro, and the other members of the SENAD are part of a small group of agents trying to control the vastly growing drug industry in South America. Their goal is to stop as many organized cartels as possible. Every time a drug raid is successful, there should be a cause for celebration. It means one less operation is running in the streets of Ciudad del Este. But capturing one operation only causes a new one to open up. Jailing one leader only causes another new leader to take over. Winning one or two battles is a victory in itself but sometimes to achieve something, these agents feel like they need to do more. This type of war can only be fought from within and agents risk their lives trying to uncover the darkest, most dangerous drug rings.
Agents have captured over 40 tons of illegal drugs in the last couple of years but the amount of cocaine and other narcotics passing between the three countries in the Triple Frontier continue to grow. Paraguay is now part of the drug route that goes to Europe. And more recently to Western Africa as well. As the country battles with massive corruption, and as it struggles with its economy and its low salary for its citizens, joining the drug trade becomes an easy choice for many people.
The film reports the daily struggle of the anti-narcotic squads against the famous cartels, knowing that every day it might be their last runway.