Thread: U.S. Coast Guard, CBP stop semi-submersible with 7.5 tons of cocaine

U.S. Coast Guard, CBP stop semi-submersible with 7.5 tons of cocaine

Published 2:50 PM PDT Sep 22, 2015




ALAMEDA, Calif. —The U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Customs and Border Protection interdicted approximately 15,000 pounds of cocaine and detained four suspects from a self-propelled semi-submersible vessel in international waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean off the coast of Mexico Aug. 31.

A CBP Office of Air and Marine P-3 Maritime Patrol Aircraft tracked the 50-foot vessel while on routine patrol in the region.

The Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf, also on patrol in the area, was alerted to the suspicious vessel.

The cutter launched two Over-the-Horizon Long-Range Interceptor boat crews to intercept and board the vessel.

Upon approach of the boarding teams, four suspected smugglers exited the hull.

Boarding team members retrieved bales and loose bricks of contraband from the semi-submersible that tested positive for cocaine.

"Every load of cocaine stopped at sea impacts the operation of transnational criminal organizations that spread violence, instability and death wherever they operate,” said Lt. Cmdr. Joseph Giammanco of the 11th Coast Guard District law enforcement branch. “It takes a dedicated, well-coordinated team to accomplish this dangerous and important mission.

We’re proud of our crews and thankful for our strong partnership with Customs and Border Protection,” he said.

The seized contraband is worth an estimated $227 million. After the suspected smugglers and contraband were removed from the semi-submersible the craft was sunk as a hazard to navigation.

“This interdiction exemplifies our commitment to combat illicit activity before it reaches the coastline,” said John Wassong, Director of Air Operations at the National Air Security Operations Center-Corpus Christi. “We are dedicated to working with our interagency partners in the maritime environment.”

Overall coordination of counter-drug patrols and surveillance in the Eastern Pacific is done by a joint interagency task force headquartered in Key West, Florida. U.S. maritime law enforcement and the interdiction phase of operations in the region occur under the tactical control of the 11th Coast Guard District headquartered in Alameda, California.

http://www.ksbw.com/news/us-coast-gu...caine/35420486

A shipment of cocaine from costa rica was just nabbed at a Philadelphia Pa port. It was bound for NY and drugs were mixed amongst a shipment of pumpkins and squash.

Record $50 million worth of Mexican heroin seized in NYC

By TOM HAYS
May 20, 2015 7:30 AM

Sacks of money, right, worth $2 million, and 154 pounds of heroin, left, worth at least $50 million, …


NEW YORK (AP) — An investigation of a pair of New York City drug traffickers has resulted in a record seizure of more than 150 pounds of heroin from Mexico worth at least $50 million, authorities said Tuesday.

The Drug Enforcement Administration and Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan called the heroin seizure the largest ever recorded by the DEA in New York state. Agents also arrested Jose Mercedes and Yenci Cruz Francisco, both of the Bronx, and recovered $2 million in cash.

Authorities believe the ring had been receiving similar-size shipments each month from suppliers in Mexico. They say it was a main source of heroin for users in New York City, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.

"To put it in perspective, this load was so large it carried the potential of supplying a dose of heroin to every man, woman and child in New York City," Brennan said in a statement. "While this important seizure stopped a huge amount of heroin from flooding our city, it also highlights the critical need to intercept heroin before it ever reaches our region."

According to a criminal complaint, investigators monitoring wiretaps learned the defendants were expecting a large drug shipment over the weekend. They followed the two suspects as they traveled in tandem in a Chevy Suburban and another vehicle to an industrial area of Montville, New Jersey, where tractor-trailers were parked, and then to a residential part of the Bronx, the complaint says.

After a drug-sniffing dog detected drugs inside the parked SUV, agents stopped Mercedes for questioning as he pulled up in a car that contained a smaller amount of heroin, authorities said. The suspect told agents there was a larger amount of drugs in the SUV and gave them instructions on how to open secret compartments inside the vehicle, they said.

A search of the Suburban resulted in the recovery of 70 kilograms — about 154 pounds — inside two compartments, authorities said.

Another search at a nearby apartment turned up $2 million underneath a floor, they said.

Mercedes and Francisco were ordered held without bail. An attorney for the men, Patrick Brackley, said they were "looking forward to their day in court."

http://news.yahoo.com/record-50-mill...183432314.html

It
is not the drugs we seize addicting our people. But think about the amounts seized and its value. How much is really making it in? How many dollars leaving for other ports?

These stories are not simply border control and DEA stories. Acts of this magnitude should be seen in their proper perspective as national security threats. Take time to copy these stories to these Congressional Committee chairmen concerned with these issues. Your citizen communication is just as important as other official business:


homeland.security@mail.house.gov (for Michael McCaul)
anna.bartlett@mail.house.gov (for Trey Gowdy)
nicolas.hagen@mail.house.gov (for Bob Goodlatte)
whistleblower@judiciary-rep.senate.gov (for Chuck Grassley)
http://www.ronjohnson.senate.gov/pub...ex.cfm/contact (contact form for Sen. Ron Johnson, US Senate Homeland Security)

Originally Posted by kevinssdad

It
is not the drugs we seize addicting our people. But think about the amounts seized and its value. How much is really making it in? How many dollars leaving for other ports?

Why don't you tell the Committee chairmen your story and use the addresses I provided? It's going to take awhile but I have seen Trey Gowdy get much more adamant, Bob Goodlatte seems to, and even Michael McCaul has been speaking more favorably about border control. We need scores of people to do this sort of thing.

Originally Posted by artist

A shipment of cocaine from costa rica was just nabbed at a Philadelphia Pa port. It was bound for NY and drugs were mixed amongst a shipment of pumpkins and squash.

$6M in cocaine hidden among squash seized at Philadelphia Port


Federal investigators display some of the 363 pounds of cocaine found Sept. 17, 2015, concealed in cases of Costa Rican pumpkins and squash at the Port of Philadelphia. (Courtesy U.S. Custom and Border Protection | For lehighvalleylive.com)

By Kurt Bresswein | For lehighvalleylive.com
Email the author | Follow on Twitter
on September 23, 2015 at 4:51 PM, updated September 23, 2015 at 5:10 PM

Federal law enforcement authorities announced Wednesday the seizure of more than $6 million worth of cocaine concealed in cases of Costa Rican pumpkins and squash at the Port of Philadelphia.

Thursday's 363-pound (164.7-kilogram) seizure was the eighth largest at the port by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers, the agency said in a news release.

The drug was hidden in 384 thin packages laminated to the inside of the fruit case box flaps, the release states.

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RELATED: Philadelphia traveler loses $50,000 to Customs after failing to report it

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The illicit shipment came in a shipping container aboard the Motor Vessel Santa Maria, destined for a distributor in the Bronx, New York, according to the release. Customs officers discovered the cocaine during an inspection of the container and its contents, and field tests confirmed the white, powdery substance as cocaine, the release states.

This is an immense amount of cocaine found cleverly stashed in the shipment of produce."

No arrests were made as of Wednesday. Customs and Border Protection worked with Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration on the ongoing investigation.

The Pennsylvania Attorney General Office's Bureau of Narcotics Investigations and Nether Providence Township, Delaware County, police also assisted with the seizure and investigation.

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RELATED: Cocaine worth $80,000 sewn into bags, flown from Jamaica to Philadelphia, authorities say

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Customs and Border Protection says that on a typical day, its officers seize 10,327 pounds of drugs at and between the nation's 328 ports of entry. In addition to narcotics enforcement, the agency routinely conducts inspection operations on arriving and departing international flights and intercepts currency, weapons, prohibited agriculture products and other illicit items.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection Assistant Port of Philadelphia Director Paul Nardella displays during a news conference Sept. 23, 2015, at the port where in the cases of Costa Rican squash officers with the agency found 363 pounds of cocaine Sept. 17, 2015, at the port. (Courtesy U.S. Custom and Border Protection | For lehighvalleylive.com)

Here is what federal authorities had to say about the seizure, according to the release:

Susan Stranieri, Customs and Border Protection Port Director for the Area Port of Philadelphia: "This significant cocaine seizure illustrates how corroboration between partner law enforcement agencies keeps our communities safe. Narcotics interdiction remains a Customs and Border Protection enforcement priority. We're pleased to have stopped this deadly shipment from entering the U.S."

Gary Tuggle, special agent in charge for the Drug Enforcement Administration Philadelphia Division:

"The DEA Philadelphia Field Division received an investigative lead and information was passed to our counterparts at Homeland Security Investigations and Customs and Border Protection that lead to the seizure of 165 kilograms of cocaine. When law enforcement works together using all of our resources and removes such a substantial amount of cocaine from our streets, this is a major blow to the drug-trafficking organizations that operate in our area.

John Kelleghan, Homeland Security Investigations Philadelphia special agent in charge: "This is an immense amount of cocaine found cleverly stashed in the shipment of produce. It's a testament to our combined local and federal law enforcement efforts that we were able to find this shipment. With HSI's transnational investigative network working with the DEA, we will continue to track down those who tried to smuggle these narcotics into the country."

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/news...among_squ.html