Colombian Police Turn Drug Trafficker's Seized Ferrari into a Patrol Car

The Colombian police authorities were recently confronted with this problem: what could they do with a low-mileage Ferrari 348 that was seized from a local drug lord and that no one wanted to buy?

Well, after some deep thought, they came up with a rather simple solution: turn the classic Ferrari into a patrol car painted in the Colombian national police's green and white colors, and tour the country before placing it permanently in a police museum.

The 1991 Ferrari model has only clocked around 1,200 miles (1,900 kilometers) and has been valued at US$250,000 by Colombian authorities.

The classic sports car was seized back in 2007 from Hernando Gomez Bustamante, also known as “Rasguno” or “Scratchy”, who is currently serving time in prison in the States for drug trafficking, money laundering and other crimes.

Up until recently, the vehicle was in the possession of Colombia's National Drug Office, or DNE, which was supposed to take care of seized assets from the illegal narcotics trade. But some 20 years after it was established, the government decided to shut down the division in September as…far too many drug assets were mysteriously disappearing, according to officials.

Authorities then went on to put the car for sale, but buyers stayed away, most likely due to fears of potential repercussions from drug traffickers related to Bustamante.

You can see more photos of the Ferrari 348 in Colombian Police colors over at Elcolombiano.

Story References: CBS News , Photo via Twitter/Zheva10

Which One of These Newly Introduced Compact SUVs

The 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show has turned out to be THE place to be if you are looking for the latest crop of compact SUVs as no less than three significant debuts took place in the City of Angels including two world premieres, the 2012 Honda CR-V and the 2013 Ford Escape, and one North America presentation, the Mazda CX-5.

And since all three crossovers will compete against each other not only in North America, but around the world as well, we thought it would be good idea to run a poll to determine which is the best looking model. We'll brief you on all three before we give you the chance to cast your vote.

We'll start of alphabetically with the 2013 Ford Escape that will be marketed as the Kuga in other regions, including Europe and China. The 2013 Escape marks a radical departure from the outgoing model not only in looks, but under the hood as well with Ford offering two small displacement turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engines with up to 237HP, alongside a conventional, naturally aspirated 2.5L four-pot.

Next up is the fourth generation of Honda's popular CR-V, which unlike the Ford Escape, represents an evolutionary improvement over its predecessor. The 2012 CR-V continues to be offered in North America with a single engine option, a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine producing 185HP.

Our final contender technically replaces Mazda's rebadged Ford Escape, the Tribute, though the Japanese firm is marketing the CX-5 as a new model. The CX-5 is the first Mazda model to fully encompass the brand's Skyactive Technology and will be available in the States with a new 2.0-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine delivering 155-ponies.

And there you have it. All you have to do now is place your vote below and if you'd like, share your thoughts in the comments section.

POLL

Which is the Best Looking Compact SUV of the Three?

2013 FORD ESCAPE

2012 HONDA CR-V

2013 MAZDA CX-5