Johnny Morales, Director of Air Operations for CBP’s Caribbean Air and Marine Branch (CAMB) speaking to media about the recent interceptions.
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, Monday April 27, 2015, CMC – The United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency says it has intercepted a vessel attempting to smuggle 42 bales of cocaine into the country through the Caribbean Sea.
The CBP said the drugs, weighing 2,425 pounds, had a street value of US$30.8 million.
It said the operation, led by the Caribbean Corridor Strike Force and the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), took place south of the island of Vieques, an eastern island off Puerto Rico.
Two United States citizens were arrested, and a two-engine vessel was seized, the CBP said.
It said US Magistrate Judge Justo Arenas authorized a complaint charging Adalberto Rodríguez-Ortiz and Angelo Burgos-Gómez with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.
If convicted the defendants face a minimum sentence of 10 years up to life in prison, CBP said
“This week federal and local law enforcement worked together to intercept thousands of kilograms of cocaine before they reached our shores,” said Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, US Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico.
“We cannot, and will not, halt our efforts to protect our communities from the countless societal problems caused by drug trafficking.”