Guatemala City  - Guatemalan authorities working with the US Drug Enforcement Administration have captured a homemade submarine in the Pacific Ocean with 10 tons of cocaine on board.

The vessel was stopped in international waters Wednesday and three Columbians and a Mexican on board were arrested, according to Guatemalan media reports on Thursday. The submarine was then towed into port.

A tip-off about the submarine came from Colombian authorities, the US broadcaster CNN reported.

US officials estimated that about a third of the cocaine delivered by sea from South America to the US market is transported by submarines. (IANS)