Record High Seas Drug Bust: Coast Guard, Border Patrol Seize Vessel With $28M in Cocaine Off Miami Beach

Was the largest USCG Small boat station cocaine seizure since in the last 30 years

MIAMI, FLORIDA – A U.S. Coast Guard Station Miami Beach law enforcement boat crew, along with CBP Air and Marine Operations (AMO) and HSI, seized approximately 3,715 pounds of cocaine, worth an estimated $28 million, from a suspected drug smuggling vessel two miles east of Government Cut on Tuesday.

CBP AMO law enforcement boat crews assisted with multiple marine units and specialized search tools upon initial interdiction by Coast Guard Station Miami Beach crew.

“This was the largest USCG Small boat station cocaine seizure since 1995,” said Lt. Matthew Ross, Coast Guard Station Miami Beach commanding officer.

“Protecting our maritime borders from illicit drug trafficking and transnational criminal organizations remains one of our highest priorities. The Coast Guard and our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners remain vigilant in our shared efforts to keep our maritime borders safe by preventing illicit narcotics from reaching our communities.”

CBP’s Office of Field Operations (OFO) Miami Seaport also responded with a K9 team once the vessel was brought pierside. The OFO K9 alerted to multiple locations within the vessel.

A physical search by AMO agents uncovered more than 1,000 concealed packages of cocaine, weighing over 3,700 lbs. Federal agents took custody of three subjects and transported them.

“Disrupting maritime narcotics smuggling like this demonstrates the power of teamwork in safeguarding our nation and holding criminals accountable,” said Executive Director Andy Blanco, CBP Air and Marine Operations Southeast Region.

“Smugglers should be warned that our whole-of-government team is watching, and they will be caught. We are part of a whole-of-government approach to secure our borders by dismantling Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Transnational Criminal Organizations , including narco-trafficking and human smuggling operations.”

MULTI-AGENCY EFFORT

The Coast Guard is the United States’ lead federal agency for maritime drug interdiction and part of the Department of Homeland Security team protecting our nation. It is at all times a military service and part of the joint force defending it.

As a member of the joint force, a law enforcement organization, a regulatory agency, and a member of the U.S. intelligence community, the Coast Guard employs a unique mix of authorities to ensure the safety and integrity of the maritime domain and protect the nation’s economic and national security.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is America’s frontline: the nation’s largest law enforcement organization and the world’s first unified border management agency. The 67,000 men and women of CBP protect America on the ground, in the air, and on the seas.

HSI is the principal investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security, responsible for investigating transnational crime and threats, specifically those criminal organizations that exploit the global infrastructure through which international trade, travel, and finance move.

HSI’s workforce consists of over 10,000 employees, assigned to 235 offices within the United States and 93 overseas locations in 56 countries.

HSI’s international presence represents the Department of Homeland Security’s most prominent investigative law enforcement presence abroad and one of the largest global footprints in U.S. law enforcement.

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