OAN’s Abril Elfi
12:55 PM – Wednesday, January 10, 2024
The United States Coast Guard has announced that they have discovered and seized over one ton of cocaine approximately worth $32 million in Miami, Florida.
On Tuesday, the crew of USCGC Margaret Norvell found more than 2,450 pounds of cocaine in Miami.
The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) released a statement following the discovery and said that the drugs were confiscated in the international waters of the Caribbean Sea in two separate seizures.
They continued stating that they have arrested six smugglers who now face prosecution in federal courts by the Department of Justice.
Commanding Officer Lt. Cmdr. Colin Weaver publicly thanked the crew involved for their efforts in the case.
“Thanks to the tremendous efforts of the Coast Guard crews and agency partners involved with this interdiction, Coast Guard Cutter Margaret Norvell brought these suspected smugglers and illicit contraband ashore for prosecution,” Weaver said. “Coast Guard crews continue to deliver on our important missions of homeland and maritime security to save lives and thwart transnational criminal organizations operating in the Caribbean.”
The USCG also announced that these cases are being investigated by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF), explaining that the group “identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten” the country.
They continued by saying that multiple crew from the USCG Cutter Richard Dixon, the USCG Cutter Dauntless and the Joint Interagency Task Force South were involved in the seizure stating that “detecting and interdicting illegal drug traffickers on the high seas involves significant interagency and international coordination.”
“Once interdiction becomes imminent, the law enforcement phase of the operation begins, and control of the operation shifts to the U.S. Coast Guard throughout the interdiction and apprehension,” said the USCG.
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