One ton of marijuana seized off San Diego coast

By Kristina Davis
Tuesday, October 19, 2010 at 5:04 p.m.

SAN DIEGO — Coast Guard crews seized a ton of marijuana about 40 miles from the San Diego coast last week but were not able to intercept the smugglers, who escaped in a speed boat, authorities said Tuesday.

A Coast Guard C-130 airplane was patrolling the water early Friday when its crew spotted a suspicious vessel, federal officials said. A patrol boat was diverted to make contact, and authorities saw the speed boat’s crew dumping bales into the ocean.

The Coast Guard crew was able to recover the drugs, but the speed boat got away. The marijuana was turned over to the Maritime Task Force in San Diego.

kristina.davis@uniontrib.com • (619) 542-4591 • Twitter @kristinadavis

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