U.S. Coast Guard seizes $35M during cocaine bust

Posted: Jul 22, 2013 7:12 AM PDT Monday, July 22, 2013 10:12 AM EST Updated: Jul 22, 2013 7:23 AM PDT Monday, July 22, 2013 10:23 AM EST

Coast Guard shoots out engine on speeding drug boat and seizes $35 million of cocaine. (Source: WFOR/CNN)

(WFOR/CNN) - Bullets from a Coast Guard helicopter rained down around a speeding drug boat during a high-speed chase in the Caribbean Sea.
Much of the chase was caught on camera.

Warning shots were fired into the Caribbean Sea, as a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter had its attention aimed at boat carrying millions worth of cocaine.

When it didn't stop, the engine was shot out.

"This is a big seizure, this is 2,300 pounds of cocaine that will not make it to America," said Lt. Commander Gave Somma, U.S. Coast Guard.

The drugs made it to U.S. soil Saturday morning, but in the hands of Coast Guard crews instead of criminals -$35 million worth of contraband was offloaded on Miami Beach.

The drugs coming in from South America were seized on July 14, when a Coast Guard airplane spotted the packages onboard a go-fast boat.

"A pursuit ensued the go-fast would not stop, the coast guard helicopter fired warning shots. The Coast Guard helicopter fired warning shots, the go-fast continued on its course so the coast guard helicopter fired a shot to disable its engine," Somma said.

Forty-two bales of cocaine were thrown overboard during the chase.

The drugs were seized, and four suspected smugglers were arrested.

"This continues to be an increasing trend that we're seeing in the central Caribbean," Somma said.

Earlier this month, the Coast Guard seized 1250 pounds of cocaine off the coast of Costa Rica

The Coast Guard says criminals have caught on and shifted course.

With increased operations to detect and deter contraband trafficking in the Southwest Caribbean, transit routes are changing and smugglers are now moving further north.

"We believe it has pushed them over more to the central Caribbean targeting more the Dominican Republic Hispaniola and Puerto Rico," said Lt. Mario Gil, U.S. Coast Guard.

Once you get the drugs over to Puerto Rico it's much easier to get them here to the streets of South Florida.

Members of the Coast Guard told The Miami Herald that the seizure was part of "operation unified resolve," a multi-agency effort launched by The Department of Homeland Security in October.

Since then, authorities say they've seized roughly 40,000 pounds of cocaine - that's a street value of about $600 million.

http://www.kctv5.com/story/22899970/us-coast-guard-seizes-35m-during-cocaine-bust