A group of hippos formerly owned by drug lord Pablo Escobar are set to soon leave South America.

Colombia plans to move about 70 of the so-called cocaine hippos to India and Mexico, according to a tweet Thursday from the governor of Antioquia province, where the mammals are located. Though some researchers have suggested the hippos could be restoring Colombias ecosystem, they are still considered an invasive species.

The animals, descendants of four African hippos illegally imported by Escobar in the 1980s, became a tourist attraction after he was killed by police in 1993. However, their population has since grown to more than 130 in the Antioquia area, settling far beyond Escobars Hacienda Npoles ranch.

Environmental authorities estimate this number could climb to 400 in the next eight years, fueling the push to move the hippos to foreign sanctuaries, according to an Associated Press report Friday.

It is possible to do, we already have experience relocating hippos in zoos nationwide, David Echeverri Lpez, a spokesperson for the Cornare environmental authority undertaking the effort, told the outlet.