99 bricks of cocaine seized from boat stopped at Haulover Park marina, federal agents say
The boat at the center of a swarm of federal agents on the docks of a Miami-Dade County marina Sunday afternoon was smuggling 99 bricks of cocaine, court documents state.
The 23-foot center console was stopped in Haulover Inlet by a Bal Harbor Police marine patrol officer because it did not have Florida registration numbers displayed on its hull, according to a Homeland Securities Investigation report released Tuesday.
The Bal Harbor officer conducted a “safety search” of the boat and noticed the driver and only occupant, 44 year-old Arlington James Rolle, was acting nervous. The officer also noticed a second boat come into the inlet and stop. The occupants of that boat “were looking directly at” Rolle’s vessel, agents wrote in the complaint.
The police officer asked Rolle if he was with them, and he said “yes,” per the complaint.
The officer escorted both boats back to the Haulover Point Marine Store at 13936 Collins Avenue.
Once at the dock, agents say in the report that Rolle “continued displaying suspicious behavior” and hesitated before opening compartments on board. Once he did, the officer noticed three gym bags with what turned out to be a total of 99 bricks of cocaine inside them, the complaint states.
The officer called for backup and the case was turned over to Homeland Security Investigations.
Agents interviewed Rolle, who first said he stole the boat from Bimini in the Bahamas. He said he planned to sell the vessel and give the money to his family, the complaint states.
He then changed his story and said he was paid $5,000 to drive the boat from Bimini to Miami. He said he knew there were drugs on board, but thought they were marijuana, agents said.
The other boat did not have drugs on board, but agents believe it was part of the smuggling operation.
Rolle said he followed the boat because his vessel did not have a global positioning satellite device on board and he needed help navigating his way to Miami.
The owner of the second boat allowed agents to look at his phone. Authorities said in the report that they found a Whatsapp conversation between the two men discussing a return trip to Miami.
The report did not specify how many people were on the other vessel. So far, only Rolle has been arrested.
It is not clear where he is from. He’s in custody at the Federal Detention Center in Miami, according to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons website.
