MEDIA AVAILABILITY: Coast Guard to offload 7,500 pounds of cocaine, marijuana in San Diego

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Media Availability  

U.S. Coast Guard 11th District PA Detachment San Diego
Contact: Coast Guard PA Detachment San Diego
Office: (619) 278-7025
After Hours: (619) 252-1304
PA Detachment San Diego online newsroom

Coast Guard to offload 7,500 pounds of cocaine, marijuana in San Diego

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WHO: Adm. Karl Schultz, the Coast Guard commandant, Capt. Brian Anderson, the Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf commanding officer and Bertholf crew.

WHAT: The Bertholf crew is scheduled to offload approximately 7,500 pounds of cocaine and marijuana seized from suspected drug smugglers in drug transit zones of the Eastern Pacific Ocean.

WHEN: Wednesday at 10:00 a.m.

WHERE: 10th Avenue Marine Terminal at 1150 Terminal St., San Diego, CA 92101

Editor's Note: Media interested in attending should RSVP with PA3 Alex Gray at (619) 252-1304 and plan to arrive at 10thAvenue Marine Terminal at 9:30 a.m. to get through security and gain access to the terminal. Media are required to wear masks at all times during the event and have a government-issued photo ID, press credentials, proof of vehicle registration and insurance. Media will be escorted to the event location following the security screening. Senior officials are being invited to event, where they will be available to discuss operations and available for interviews after remarks.

SAN DIEGO — The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf (WMSL-750) is scheduled to offload approximately 7,500 pounds of seized cocaine and marijuana in San Diego Wednesday.

The drugs, worth an estimated $126.7 million, was seized in international waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean between January and February representing 10 suspected drug smuggling vessel interdictions off the coasts of Mexico, Central and South America by the following Coast Guard and Navy ships:

  • The Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf (WMSL-750) crew was responsible for four interdictions seizing approximately 6,200 pounds of cocaine.
  • The Coast Guard Cutter Munro (WMSL-755) crew was responsible for three interdictions seizing approximately 1,100 pounds of cocaine and 50 pounds of marijuana.
  • The Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment 107, deployed aboard the USS Freedom (LCS-1), was responsible for one interdiction seizing approximately 22 pounds of cocaine.
  • The Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane (WMEC-903) crew was responsible for one interdiction seizing approximately 50 pounds of marijuana.
  • The Coast Guard Cutter Vigilant (WMEC-617) crew was responsible for one interdiction seizing approximately 22 pounds of cocaine.

On April 1, U.S. Southern Command increased counter-narcotics operations in the Western Hemisphere to disrupt the flow of drugs. Numerous U.S. agencies from the Departments of Defense, Justice and Homeland Security cooperated in the effort to combat transnational organized crime. The Coast Guard, Navy, Customs and Border Protection, FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, along with allied and international partner agencies, play a role in counter-drug operations.

 

The fight against drug cartels in the Eastern Pacific Ocean requires unity of effort in all phases from detection, monitoring and interdictions, to criminal prosecutions by international partners and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices in districts across the nation. The law enforcement phase of counter-smuggling operations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean is conducted under the authority of the 11th Coast Guard District, headquartered in Alameda. The interdictions, including the actual boardings, are led and conducted by members of the U.S. Coast Guard.

 

The Bertholf is a 418-foot national security cutter, commissioned in 2008 and homeported in Alameda. The Munro is a 418-foot national security cutter homeported in Alameda. The Freedom is a 387-foot littoral combat ship homeported in San Diego. The Harriet Lane is a 270-foot medium-endurance cutter homeported in Portsmouth, Virginia. The Vigilant is a 210-foot medium-endurance cutter homeported in Port Canaveral, Florida.

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