$20M worth of cocaine, marijuana intercepted by Coast Guard

The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) says they have intercepted over $20 million worth of cocaine and marijuana from alleged drug traffickers.

Approximately 2,220 pounds of cocaine and 3,320 pounds of marijuana were offloaded Wednesday at Coast Guard Base Miami Beach, the USCG said in a media release.  

“Stopping harmful and illicit narcotics from reaching our shores and entering our communities is a team effort,” Cmdr. Brian Gismervik, Coast Guard Cutter Northland’s commanding officer, said in a statement.

“In the dynamic maritime environment, it takes the combined efforts of our joint force DoD, DHS, and international partners to combat transnational criminal organizations,” he concluded. 

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The huge amount was the total result of four separate encounters on the Caribbean Sea, USCG said. It was an international effort, with participation from Royal Canadian Navy and Royal Netherlands Navy ships, along with the U.S. Navy.

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Along with video of the drugs being offloaded in their black plastic wrappings, the Coast Guard shared images of when a deployed Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron team aboard the Royal Netherlands navy ship Friesland encountered a suspected drug smuggling vessel off the coast of Venezuela on June 15.

The Coast Guard has not yet provided any information on the suspects involved.