By The Epoch Times | Created at 2026-10-15 13:56:50 | Updated at 2026-10-16 09:02:46
19 hours ago
The U.S. Coast Guard has seized thousands of pounds of illegal drugs during operations in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
The Coast Guard on Wednesday offloaded about 29,600 pounds of cocaine and 3,355 pounds of marijuana worth an estimated $226.7 million in Port Everglades, Florida, following six interceptions in international waters.
The operations involved the Coast Guard cutter Tampa, a helicopter squadron, the destroyer USS Gridley, and specialized law enforcement teams.
Coast Guard Vice Adm. Jo-Ann Burdian told reporters that the cocaine was enough to deliver around 10 million potentially fatal doses to Americans, adding that last year, more than 19,000 U.S. citizens lost their lives to overdoses from the drug.
The Coast Guard said its operations and rapid responses have denied criminal organizations billions in illicit revenue.
“The Coast Guard continues to leverage its authorities and partnerships across the Western Hemisphere to degrade Transnational Criminal Organizations’ ability to harm American communities,” Burdian said in a statement.
Operation Pacific Viper, launched in August 2025, has accelerated counterdrug operations in the eastern Pacific region, a key corridor used for transporting drugs from Central and South America.
Last month, the Department of Homeland Security said that the Coast Guard had seized more than 260,000 pounds of cocaine under the operation.
The total surpassed 260,000 pounds after cutter Tampa seized more than 25,000 pounds of cocaine over six days in three separate interdictions, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a Sept. 24 statement.
The Coast Guard has interdicted 231 metric tons of drugs in calendar year 2025 and stopped 231 narco-terrorists from successful deliveries, according to its website.
Cracking down on maritime drug shipments is a key focus of the Trump administration, as outlined in the 2026 National Drug Control Strategy report.
The U.S. Coast Guard seized illegal drugs during interdictions in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. Courtesy of the U.S. Coast Guard
The report said the most lethal drug threat to the United States is the flood of synthetic drugs, principally fentanyl and methamphetamine, combined with the increasing flow of cocaine from South America.
Drug Trafficking Networks
U.S. forces are also targeting floating refueling stations that provide support for maritime drug trafficking operations. Last month, the U.S. Southern Command announced sinking two such stations in the eastern Pacific that were supporting the violent narco-terrorist organization Los Choneros.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) said in August that a Colombian drug kingpin who took part in maritime drug smuggling activities was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison.
In March, the DOJ announced that seven Colombian nationals who allegedly used semi-submersible vessels to traffic several tons of cocaine from Colombia to the United States through the Pacific Ocean were facing charges of cocaine distribution. They were arrested in Colombia last year and extradited to the United States.
The U.S. military has been carrying out strikes against drug trafficking vessels since September 2025 under Operation Southern Spear.
A U.S. official told reporters during a Sept. 1 press call that foreign terrorist groups operating in Mexico and the entire Western Hemisphere were responsible for killing more Americans than any adversary the United States has faced in recent memory.
