Here's what $160 million of cocaine looks like: Coast Guard seizes 12,000 pounds of drugs

Kinsey Crowley, USA TODAY
·2 min read
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The Coast Guard Cutter Confidence crew offloaded more than 12,100 pounds of cocaine worth more than $160 million on Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2023 in Miami, Florida.
The Coast Guard Cutter Confidence crew offloaded more than 12,100 pounds of cocaine worth more than $160 million on Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2023 in Miami, Florida.

The U.S. Coast Guard and partner agencies recently intercepted several illegal drug smuggling boats in the Caribbean Sea, bringing in more than 12,000 pounds of cocaine worth more than $160 million.

The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Confidence offloaded the haul in Miami, Florida on Tuesday, according to a press release by the Coast Guard Seventh District. The accumulation of contraband was the result of nine interceptions by several agencies over the course of multiple days, spokesperson Santiago Gomez said in an email to USA TODAY.

Photos and videos show the scale of the busts. Twelve pallets hold blocks of the narcotics stacked up as much as five rows high. A video on the USCG's Instagram shows the crew members forming an assembly line to offload the drugs from the ship.

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The busts involved the Joint Interagency Task Force South in Key West and ships from the Royal Netherlands Navy, the Royal British Navy and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. All were involved in detecting and monitoring the vessels trafficking drugs, but once the interdiction became imminent, the U.S. Coast Guard took over, according to the release.

The case loads were then transferred to one vessel for transport and offloading, Gomez said.

"(Tuesday's) contraband offload represents what can be achieved when U.S. and international defense and law enforcement agencies work together to combat the entry of illicit drugs into the United States," said Lt. Fernando Pla, duty enforcement officer for Coast Guard District Seven. "This teamwork continues to deter the illicit drug trafficking market and is a testament to the hard work of these crews."

Crew member of Coast Guard Cutter Confidence offloading big cocaine haul from nine different cases in Miami, Florida.
Crew member of Coast Guard Cutter Confidence offloading big cocaine haul from nine different cases in Miami, Florida.

17 people detained

Seventeen suspected smugglers have been detained but have not been charged as of Thursday at noon. Gomez said their identities would not be released unless they are formally charged by a relevant U.S. Attorney's Office.

The agency's biggest offload occurred in February 2022 when the Coast Guard Cutter James' crew brought in $1.06 billion worth of illegal drugs, including 15,800 pounds of marijuana and 54,500 pounds of cocaine, Gomez said.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Cocaine seized by Coast Guard, brought to Miami worth $160 milion