In a shocking incident, the United States Coast Guard offloaded about $500 million worth of drugs at Port Everglades last Thursday.
Crew of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter James, offloaded over 33,200 pounds of cocaine and 12,400 pounds of marijuana worth approximately $448 million.
Cameras caught the Coast Guard as they offloaded the drugs at the port.
The Coast Guard said the fight against drug cartels in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea requires a unity of effort in all phases, from detection and monitoring to interdiction and apprehension, through criminal prosecutions by international partners and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices in districts across the nation.
The offloaded drugs were interdicted during 13 separate cases in the international waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, per the officials who described it as a complicated and risky task.
“Our success hinges on our people. For the past 113 days, the women and men of James worked around the clock in support of the counter-narcotics mission,” said Capt. Donald Terkanian, commanding officer of James. “That being said, we cannot do this mission alone. We appreciate the immense support and dedication from our interagency and international partners that join us here today.”
USCG Vice Admiral Kevin Lunday added that it is not only about drugs but much more than that. It is about the national security of the United States.
“It represents one part of a very large and strong interagency team that works closely with our allies and international partners to interdict maritime smuggling of dangerous and illegal drugs into the United States,” he noted.
Video credit: US coast guard.
