$500M in cocaine, pot seized in international waters offloaded in Broward, Coast Guard says
.jpg "Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton’s crew wraps bales of drugs at Port Everglades Nov. 22, 2021.")
U.S. Coast Guard crew members offloaded thousands of pounds of cocaine and marijuana worth more than $500 million at Port Everglades on Monday.
The drugs — 26,250 pounds of cocaine and 3,700 pounds of marijuana — were seized by both the U.S. and Canadian Coast Guards during eight stops in international waters.
On Monday, the bales of drugs were hauled off the Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton by its crew. The haul was the largest drug interdiction for the ship, which is based in South Carolina.
“I could not be prouder of this crew and their determination to keeping more than 26,000 pounds of cocaine from reaching the shores of Central and North America,” said Capt. Matthew Brown, commanding officer, Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton, in a news release. “It has been a dynamic two and a half months for this ship with some very difficult law enforcement cases. But at the core of these capabilities is a true culture of trust and respect for each other which enabled the safe apprehension of 14 suspected traffickers.“
The Coast Guard said the interdiction of suspected drug smuggling vessels is made possible through “strong international relationships, with key partners like Canada.”
These drugs were seized in international waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean off the coasts of Mexico, Central and South America by three ships: the Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton, the Coast Guard Cutter Vigilant and the HMCS Harry DeWolf.
This story was originally published November 22, 2021 at 10:02 PM.
