Coast Guard to offload approximately 10 tons of cocaine in Port Everglades

Coast Guard to offload approximately 10 tons of cocaine in Port Everglades

Over 2200 kilograms of seized contraband lie on Coast Guard Cutter Spencer’s flight deck with an MH-65 Dolphin Helicopter from Jacksonville, FL. The fight against transnational organized crime networks in the Eastern Pacific requires unity of effort in all phases from detection, monitoring and interdiction, to prosecution. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer Second Class Timothy Midas.

A U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Spencer boatcrew interdicts a self-propelled semi submersible vessel during the ship’s counter narcotics patrol. The fight against transnational organized crime networks in the Eastern Pacific requires unity of effort in all phases from detection, monitoring and interdictions, to prosecution. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer Second Class Timothy Midas.

Seized contraband being temporarily held in Coast Guard Cutter Spencer’s helicopter hangar prior to disposition. The fight against transnational organized crime networks in the Eastern Pacific requires unity of effort in all phases from detection, monitoring and interdictions, to prosecution. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer Second Class Timothy Midas.

Editors' Note: Click on images to view and download high resolution versions.

 

Editor’s Note:  Media interested in attending must RSVP with the Coast Guard Seventh District Public Affairs duty officer at 786-367-7649. Only credentialed media will be granted access to the event. Media must arrive no later than 8:30 a.m. 

Security:  Be prepared to show government-issued photo identification, such as a driver's license or passport, and media credentials at the security checkpoint.

WHO: Commanding officer, and the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Spencer

WHAT: Offload approximately 10 tons of cocaine

WHEN: 9 a.m. Tuesday

WHERE: Pier 4, Port Everglades - 1800 SE 20th St, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316. The seaport can accessed by:   

1. Main entrance. Take I-595 East straight into the port (I-595 become Eller Drive once inside the Port). I-595 runs east/west with connections to the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport, U.S.1, I-95, State Road 7 (441), Florida's Turnpike, Sawgrass Expressway and I-75.
2. North entrance. Take U.S.1 or A1A to 17th Street Causeway in Fort Lauderdale and turn south at the streetlight onto Eisenhower Blvd.
3. US1/Federal Highway entrance. At the intersection of State Road 84 East and U.S.1 (Federal Hwy.), turn east into the seaport.  

MIAMI — The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Spencer is scheduled to offload approximately 10 tons of cocaine and 23 kilograms of heroin Tuesday in Port Everglades worth an estimated $300 million wholesale seized in international waters off the Eastern Pacific Ocean.

The drugs were interdicted along Mexico and Central America by multiple U.S. Coast Guard cutters.

The offload represents 14 separate, suspected drug smuggling vessel interdictions by the Coast Guard:

• The CGC Steadfast was responsible for one case, seizing an estimated 940 kilograms of cocaine
• The CGC James was responsible for two cases, seizing an estimated 690 kilograms of cocaine
• The CGC Alert  was responsible for six cases, seizing an estimated 3,305 kilograms of cocaine and 23 kilograms of heroin
• The CGC Aspen was responsible for one case, seizing an estimated 102 kilograms of cocaine
• The CGC Vigorous  was responsible for one case, seizing an estimated 1,150 kilograms of cocaine
• The CGC Spencer was responsible for two cases, seizing an estimated 3,000 kilograms of cocaine
• The CGC Thetis was responsible for one case, seizing an estimated 1,060 kilograms of cocaine

Numerous U.S. agencies from the Departments of Defense, Justice and Homeland Security are involved in the effort to combat transnational organized crime. The Coast Guard, Navy, Customs and Border Protection, FBI, Drug Enforcement Agency, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement along with allied and international partner agencies play a role in counter-drug operations. The fight against transnational organized crime networks in the Eastern Pacific requires unity of effort in all phases from detection, monitoring and interdictions, to prosecutions by U.S. Attorneys in California, on the East Coast, and in the Caribbean.

"This offload today is not just the result of one unit, but the combined efforts of multiple Coast Guard cutters, aircraft and support, as well as that of our partners and allied men and women who continue to work day and night to stop these criminal organizations from profiting off transnational crime and smuggling," said Cdr. John Mctamney, Commanding Officer Coast Guard Cutter Spencer. "While this offload represents approximately 10 tons of illicit drugs that will never hit out streets, it also represents a significant depletion to the cash flow to these criminal organizations."

The Coast Guard increased U.S. and allied presence in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Basin, which are known drug transit zones off of Central and South America, as part of its Western Hemisphere Strategy. During at-sea interdictions in international waters, a suspect vessel is initially located and tracked by allied, military or law enforcement personnel. The interdictions, including the actual boarding, are led and conducted by U.S. Coast Guardsmen. The law enforcement phase of counter-smuggling operations in the Eastern Pacific are conducted under the authority of the 11th Coast Guard District headquartered in Alameda, California.

The cutter Steadfast is a 210-foot medium-endurance cutter homeported in Astoria, Oregon. The cutter James is a 418-foot national security cutter homeported in Charleston, South Carolina. The cutter Alert is a 210-foot medium-endurance cutter homeported in Astoria, Oregon. The cutter Aspen is a 225-foot buoy tender homeported in San Francisco, California. The cutter Vigorous is a 210-foot medium-endurance cutter homeported in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The cutter Spencer is a 270-foot medium-endurance cutter homeported in Boston, Massachusetts. The cutter Thetis is a 270-foot medium-endurance cutter homeported in Key West, Florida.

-USCG-