Miami -
The United States Coast Guard said on Tuesday it had seized an estimated $110-million worth of cocaine during two recent operations in the Caribbean.
The combined bust of 3 300kg is “one of the largest in a long time”, Petty Officer 3rd Class Mark Barney told AFP.
The first seizure occurred south of Jamaica on March 15, where the Coast Guard found about 97 bales containing about 2 400kg of cocaine floating near a fishing boat suspected of smuggling drugs. The estimated wholesale value of the find is $80-million.
The second operation, on March 19, involved a Colombian-flagged boat with five Colombian nationals on board that have been handed over to authorities in their homeland.
The Coast Guard pursued the vessel in the south-west Caribbean Sea, firing warning and disabling shots that prompted the crew to dump 900kg of cocaine worth an estimated wholesale value of $30-million.
Both finds were transferred to federal authorities on Tuesday in Miami, Florida,. - Sapa-AFP