The US Coast Guard has seized more than 20 tons of cocaine worth $517,5 million in a series of operations in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
The drugs were unloaded at Port Everglades yesterday, and 35 suspected smugglers were handed over to US authorities.
The US Coast Guard said the successful operations were the result of 14 interceptions of vessels in international waters between December and March. It said the largest single seizure occurred on December 22, when US forces seized 5,54 tons of cocaine from a high-speed vessel southeast of the Galapagos Islands.
Video: US Coast Guard
Captain Jonathan Carter, commander of the USCGC Stone, said the crew demonstrated exceptional effectiveness in combating drug smuggling:
"You've heard that the Coast Guard's National Security Interceptors are crucial in the fight against drug trafficking, but they still need brave men and women willing to serve at sea and put themselves in harm's way," said Captain Jonathan Carter.
"I am incredibly proud of the work of our crew and their efforts in combating narco-terrorism during this mission. In one extraordinary case, the crew intercepted four fast vessels in just 15 minutes and seized nearly five tons of cocaine - a drug that will never be mixed with deadly fentanyl and pose a threat to the lives of Americans at home," Carter said.
International operation against drug cartels
The Coast Guard has conducted a series of interceptions in international waters over the past three months. First, on December 21, the crew of the Stone seized 740 kilograms of cocaine about 517 kilometers west of Ecuador, and then on December 22, a low-profile vessel was intercepted with 5,54 tons of cocaine off the Galapagos.
In a subsequent operation, conducted on January 9, a high-speed vessel carrying 1,07 tons of cocaine was discovered west of Salinas, Ecuador, and on January 28, a drone spotted a vessel south of Mexico, after which 1,76 tons of cocaine were seized. They point out that on February 19, a major operation near the Galapagos Islands intercepted four high-speed vessels carrying five tons of cocaine.
The operations involved the ships USCGC Stone and USCGC Mohawk, specialized helicopter and unmanned aerial vehicles, as well as multiple US and international agencies.
Mohawk Commander David Ratner emphasized that the fight against drug trafficking does not begin on American shores.
"The fight against drug trafficking and transnational criminal organizations does not begin at our United States maritime borders," Ratner said. "Our efforts to protect Americans at home begin by denying drug traffickers access to maritime routes and disrupting their operations far out at sea, where we work with interagency and strategic regional partners like Costa Rica," he said.
A blow to the cartels worth half a billion dollars
The drugs seized in these operations are linked to the Mexican Sinaloa and Jalisco Nueva Generación cartels, which were recently designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the US government.
The seizure of this amount of cocaine represents a significant financial blow to criminal networks involved in drug trafficking and the illegal production of fentanyl.
The US Coast Guard announced that they are continuing their intensified operations against drug cartels at sea, in cooperation with international partners and intelligence services.
They pointed out that detecting and intercepting drug smugglers on the high seas requires significant interagency and international coordination.
"The Joint Interagency Task Force-South, headquartered in Key West, conducts detection and surveillance of air and seaborne shipments of illicit substances. When an interception is imminent, the law enforcement phase begins, and control of the operation passes to the U.S. Coast Guard, which also conducts the arrest. Interceptions in the eastern Pacific Ocean are conducted by U.S. Coast Guard personnel under the jurisdiction of the Eleventh Coast Guard District, headquartered in Alameda, California," the USCG said.
Bonus video:
