Coast Guard Seizes 4.2 Tons of Cocaine

The crews of two Coast Guard cutters detained a suspicious-looking vessel in the Atlantic Ocean on Feb. 16, and seized 4.2 tons of cocaine that was stowed in its hold. Seapower magazine reported Feb. 27 that the crews of the San Juan, Puerto Rico-based Joseph Napier first spotted the vessel off the coast of Suriname. The contraband had an estimated street value of $125 million, and is the largest such seizure by the Coast Guard since 1999. Joseph Napier’s crew detained four Guyanese crewmen from the vessel, and turned them over to federal authorities in San Juan. The Port Canaveral, Fla.-based medium-endurance cutter Vigilant towed the vessel to St. Vincent in the Virgin Islands, after the illicit cargo was offloaded in San Juan.