U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Air and Marine Operations worked with partners in the Eastern Caribbean to disrupt smuggling of 2.8 tons of cocaine, denying transnational criminal organizations approximately $73,892,000 USD on April 9, 2024.
“Partnerships are key to stopping drugs from reaching our borders,” stated Creighton A. Skeen, Director of Air and Marine Operations, Caribbean Air and Marine Branch. “We will continue to leverage unique capabilities to stop illicit smuggling on the seas.”
On April 8, a National Air Security Operations aircrew worked with multiple partners in the Eastern Caribbean to maintain continuous observation of a suspicious vessel with nine people on board.
On April 9, the Air and Marine Operations aircrew coordinated with Joint Interagency Task Force-South and U.S. Coast Guard partners for interdiction of the suspicious vessel.
The aircrew continued aerial monitoring as the suspicious vessel evaded law enforcement and threw bales overboard. Partner teams recovered 84 bales of cocaine from the water that weighed 5,618 pounds.
