Largest ever cocaine haul offloaded in Key West
Story by Roger Gayman, Public Affairs Officer
11th Coast Guard District
KEY WEST, Fla. - Representatives from the departments of homeland security, defense and justice conducted a news 
briefing and media availability Nov. 5in conjunction with the arrival of USS Curts and offload of more than 75,000 pounds of cocaine with an estimated street value of more than $2.3 billion.
The USS Curt's offload included cocaine from five cases, which were detected and seized between Aug. 31 and Sept. 26 by DoD and U.S. Coast Guard units working for the Joint Interagency Task Force South based here and for the U.S. Coast Guard District Eleven based in Alameda, Calif., including the first and third largest seizures in U.S. Coast Guard history. A Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET) embarked aboard the USS Curts made the largest discovery of more than 30,000 pounds of cocaine Sept. 17 aboard the fishing vessel Lina Maria approximately 300 nautical miles west of the Galapagos Islands. Sept. 23, a Coast Guard LEDET embarked aboard the USS Crommelin discovered approximately 26,775 pounds of cocaine aboard the fishing vessel San Jose approximately 650 nautical miles southwest of the Galapagos Islands.
All of these cases were made possible by intelligence developed by the investigative team of Operation Panama Express, which includes the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida, the Coast Guard, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S, Navy Joint Interagency Task Force-South (JIATF-South), the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigative Division, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the sheriff's offices from Pinellas and Sarasota counties. Additionally, each interdiction was made possible by the professional mission execution of P-3 and C-130 long-range maritime patrol aircraft operated by Homeland Security Air and Marine Operations, the Navy and the Coast Guard.
These seizures brought the total cocaine seized by the Coast Guard during the fiscal year ending Sept. 30 to a record 240,519 pounds, worth approximately $7.7 billion. The previous annual record of 138,393 pounds was surpassed May 29 with the seizure of 4,300 pounds of cocaine from a go-fast vessel in the Eastern Pacific.
The following details are provided on each case:
1. Go-fast vessel 1: Intercepted by USS Curts and Coast Guard LEDET 108. Approximately 1,323 pounds of cocaine in 30 bales discovered aboard the vessel 300 nautical miles north of the Galapagos Islands on Aug. 31. Five detainees transferred to federal authorities for prosecution.
2. Go-fast vessel 2: Intercepted by Coast Guard Cutter Jarvis. Approximately 4,320 lbs of cocaine in 80 bales recovered from the water. The bales were associated with go-fast Vessel 2, initially detected 500 nautical miles northwest of the Galapagos Islands on Sept. 9. No suspects were apprehended.
3. Fishing vessel Lina Maria: Intercepted by USS Curts and Coast Guard LEDET 108. Approximately 30,720 lbs of cocaine in 600 bales discovered onboard the vessel with out nationality 300 nautical miles west of Ecuador on Sept. 13. Ten detainees transferred to federal authorities for prosecution.
4. Fishing vessel San Jose: Intercepted by USS Crommelin and Coast Guard LEDET 105. Approximately 26,775 lbs of cocaine in 525 bales discovered onboard the Belizean vessel 650 nautical miles southwest of the Galapagos Islands on Sept. 23. Eight detainees transferred to federal authorities for prosecution.
5. Fishing vessel Cielo Azul: Intercepted by USS Curts and Coast Guard LEDET 104. Approximately 12,152 lbs of cocaine in 245 bales discovered onboard the Colombian vessel 550 nautical miles west of the Colombia/Ecuador border on Sept. 26. Eight detainees transferred to federal authorities for prosecution.
Operation Panama Express intelligence gathering led directly to the cocaine seizures onboard the three fishing vessel mother ships, and indirectly assisted in the two go-fast vessel cases. This reliable intelligence information allowed Joint Interagency Task Force South to strategically position air and surface assets.
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