Federal Authorities seize $75 Million Cocaine-filled Submarine in Puerto Rico


The United States Coast Guard seized approximately 2,500 kilograms of cocaine transported by three individuals who were detained aboard a semi-submersible vessel in the Caribbean Sea, at a point in the region that was not specified, with a black market value close to the 75 million dollars and that supposes a historical record for the federal district of Puerto Rico.

The US federal agency reported this Monday through a statement that on the 14th a Federal Grand Jury in the District of Puerto Rico issued a formal indictment of four counts in which three people were accused of conspiracy to distribute narcotics from a boat .

 

The United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, Stephen Muldrow, reported through a statement that on April 8, on the high seas, the defendants, Arturo González, Freiman Yepes and José Álvaro Córdoba, whose nationalities were not Revealed, they conspired with the intention of distributing cocaine from a boat without a nationality license that was kept outside the territorial waters of any Caribbean territory to avoid their arrest.

The United States Coast Guard, during the capture operation, the exact point of which was not identified, seized approximately 2,500 kilograms of cocaine that the defendants were carrying on board.

The statement indicates that the capture of the drug traffickers was the result of the efforts of various agencies in support of the US Southern Command’s counter-drug trafficking operations.

In the Caribbean area, the Working Group against Organized Crime to Fight Drugs (OCDETF) and the programs of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) and the Caribbean Corridor Strike Force (CCSF) operate. , in English).

“Since the beginning of October 2020, the CCSF and supporting agencies have seized more than 17,000 kilograms of cocaine and have brought charges against 82 defendants,” said United States Attorney Muldrow.

If convicted, defendants face a minimum sentence of 10 years to life in prison on the drug trafficking charges and a maximum sentence of 15 years.

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