VIRGINIA CUTTER OFFLOADS 1,340 POUNDS OF COCAINE

February 16, 2004

MIAMI – The 270-foot Portsmouth, Va., based cutter Tampa, will arrive at Integrated Support Command Miami this evening to offload 1,340 pounds of cocaine, which Tampa’s crew disrupted from a go-fast smuggling attempt, Jan. 27.

TampaÃƒÆ’Ã†â€™Ãƒâ€šÃ‚Â¢ÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â¢ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã…Â¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚Â¬ÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â¢ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã…Â¾Ãƒâ€šÃ‚Â¢s embarked HH-65 Dolphin helicopter spotted the go-fast heading north in the Caribbean at speeds of about 35 mph. The Dolphin was soon accompanied by a UH-60 Seahawk helicopter deployed from the naval vessel USS McClusky.

As the chase ensued, the crew of the go-fast jettisoned approximately 50 bales of contraband into the ocean while fleeing south. The British Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel, Wave Knight, with an embarked U.S. Coast Guard law enforcement team, was diverted to recover the jettisoned bales.

The pursuit forced the go-fast into Colombian waters, where Colombian Navy aircraft and vessels attempted to locate the fleeing go-fast, but without success.

Twenty-six bales of the cocaine, weighing approximately 50 pounds each, were picked up by RFA Wave Knight, and transferred to Tampa. About another 1,200 pounds of contraband are believed to have been lost at sea.

All 26 bales will be handed over to Drug Enforcement Administration officials tonight.

Since Jan. 20, almost 20,000 pounds of drugs have been stopped by various Portsmouth based Coast Guard cutters working under the Joint Interagency Task Force South, in Key West, Fla., and the Seventh Coast Guard District Command Center located here.

This is the fourth smuggling attempt thwarted by the crew of Tampa since October, tallying up a total of approximately 13,000 pounds seized or destroyed at sea. So far in Fiscal Year 2004, which began Oct. 1, there have been 27 major interdiction events in the Caribbean, resulting in the seizure or disruption of more than 50,000 pounds of drugs bound for the U.S., already more than all of FY-03.

VIRGINIA CUTTER OFFLOADS 1,340 POUNDS OF COCAINE

The pursuit forced the go-fast into Colombian waters, where Colombian Navy aircraft and vessels attempted to locate the fleeing go-fast, but without success.

All 26 bales will be handed over to Drug Enforcement Administration officials tonight.

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