After months at sea, U.S. Coast Guard’s Chesches returned to San Diego on Thursday, with more than 37,000 pounds of cocaine confiscated and a minority of crew members lost at sea, officials said.
Their huge uninstall Narcotics Transport – Weight greater than adult humpback whales, estimated to be worth $275 million – a few days later The search work is over According to the Coast Guard, for 23-year-old seaman Bryan Lee.
Lee, from Rancho Cordova, was found missing at 6:45 a.m. last Tuesday, while Waesche is conducting a routine anti-drug about 300 nautical miles south of Mexico Patrol. The search staff specifically used 190 hours to search 19,000 nautical miles for Lee using drones, aircraft and vessels before the search was suspended on Monday.
From December to mid-February, the confiscated cocaine was purified through 11 drug interception missions along the coast of Mexico and along Central and South America. Li’s memory was spent in silence in celebration of the epilepsy at a press conference Thursday.
Captain Tyson Scofield, commander of Waesche, said: “It’s really good to see that during this patrol, every member gathered together, including our captain Bryan Lee, who contributed to the mission. Encouraging. ” “We feel sad for his loss, but he shares his success with all of us today. Our hearts are with his family as their grief loss grieves with us.”
Coast Guard spokesman Christopher Sappey said it was very unusual for crew members to disappear during patrols.
However, he noted that they did do dangerous work by directly boarding a smuggling ship in challenging ocean conditions and catching drugs found on the ship. When suspected vessels were found during patrol, the crew initiated interception missions, often using semi-submarine vessels or small boats to access and detain them on board.
“During this patrol, Waesche staff faced many challenges, overcame the most difficult adversity, and still had 11 successful drug interceptions,” Schofield said. “Their dedication, character and resilience ensured that The success of our mission.”
Schofield said the crew completed six drug interception missions in six days in the peak performance window. He added that the total amount of cocaine caught was enough to accommodate 33 million hits.
“This means 33 million cocaine doesn’t go on the streets of the United States,” he said. “This is 33 million instances, there is no chance to mix fentanyl together and put this poison on the streets of our country. ”
Now, narcotics will be transferred to other U.S. agencies for processing, testing and ultimately destruction, Sappey said.
Deputy Admiral Andrew Tiongson said as the Coast Guard is intensifying efforts to transnational transport of cartels operating in Central and South American seas.
Jo-Ann Burdian said that so far this year, the Coast Guard and partners have been responsible for sabotaging the delivery of 150 tons of cocaine and handing over 136 detainees to U.S. law enforcement agencies for criminal prosecution.
