A drug shipment valued at 57 million dollars arrived this Monday at Port Everglades in Florida, after being seized in the Caribbean by vessels from the United States Coast Guard (USCG) in two separate operations, according to a statement from the institution.
The crew of the coast guard vessel USCGC Escanaba offloaded approximately 7,250 pounds of cocaine and 2,082 pounds of marijuana at the Florida port, resulting from two interdictions carried out in conjunction with the USCGC Richard Dixon, a Sentinel-class fast response coast guard vessel.
In the operation, the Tactical Law Enforcement Team of the Pacific Coast Guard (LEDET 101), the Homeland Security Cutter-Ocean, the Joint Interagency Task Force South (JIATF-S), and the watch personnel from the Southeast District of the Coast Guard, based in Miami, also participated.
The JIATF-S, based in Key West, is the central agency responsible for detecting and monitoring the air and maritime traffic of illegal drugs in the Caribbean.
Once an interdiction is imminent, operational control passes to the Coast Guard for the phases of capture and apprehension.
An exemplary team effort
The first-class petty officer Douglas Strong, a boatswain assigned to the Escanaba, highlighted the coordination that made the operation's success possible.
“The excellent surveillance and the swift, decisive actions allowed for the success of this interdiction,” stated Strong, according to the statement.
"For an interdiction like this to occur, the entire crew must execute the operation perfectly. It was an exemplary team effort that ensured over 2,000 pounds of illicit narcotics never reached our communities. Thanks to the crews of the Coast Guard cutter Richard Dixon and the Homeland Security Cutter-Ocean for their collaboration: one team, one fight," the officer added.
A pattern of increasing operations
At the end of April, the same Coast Guard offloaded about 7,050 pounds of cocaine valued at over 53 million dollars in Port Everglades, following interdictions in the Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific.
In August, an international operation intercepted a boat with 2,428 kilograms of cocaine and 619 pounds of marijuana, resulting in the arrest of three suspects.
In July, U.S. authorities seized tons of narcotics in the Caribbean Sea with the participation of JIATF-S, Southern Command, and the Coast Guard of Costa Rica.
The pressure on maritime drug trafficking networks in the region is not limited to interdictions.
Last Monday, the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) carried out an attack on a go-fast vessel in the Caribbean that resulted in the deaths of four individuals, allegedly linked to drug trafficking.
According to accumulated reports, the campaign of military attacks by the U.S. against drug trafficking boats in the region had resulted in at least 231 deaths in 69 attacks up to that date.
The ship and its mission
The USCGC Escanaba is a medium endurance 270-foot Famous class cutter, based in Portsmouth, Virginia, under the Atlantic Area Command of the Coast Guard.
The institution is the leading federal agency in the United States for maritime drug interdiction and is part of the Department of Homeland Security.
The Coast Guard stated that its ongoing operations in the Caribbean have deprived criminal organizations of billions of dollars in illicit revenue, preventing the flow of narcotics into American communities.
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