The U.S. Coast Guard offloaded more than 28,500 pounds of cocaine, valued at an estimated $211.3 million, on Thursday at Port Everglades, authorities said.
Coast Guard officials announced the drug seizure followed four successful interdictions in the Eastern Pacific.
Interdiction operations
On May 3, a maritime patrol aircraft identified two suspicious vessels 170 miles west of Mexico, leading to the interdiction of 4,630 pounds of cocaine, with 4,608 pounds transferred to Ecuadorian authorities for prosecution, according to the USCG.
On May 5, 9,993 pounds of cocaine were recovered from a bale field 475 miles southwest of Colima, Mexico. The following day, 14,559 pounds were retrieved from three bale fields 575 miles southwest of Acapulco, Mexico, after an embarked helicopter crew observed vessels discarding bales.
On May 10, the crews recovered 3,984 pounds from another bale field 660 miles south of Acapulco.
“These operations align with the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces’ Strike Force initiatives, targeting high-level criminal organizations,” the Coast Guard said.
