U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Seneca offloaded over a ton of marijuana worth an estimated $2.4 million wholesale on May 9 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
The 2,600 pounds of drugs were interdicted by the Coast Guard Cutter Diligence in April during a chase approximately 80 miles south of Haiti.
Numerous U.S. agencies from the Departments of Defense, Justice and Homeland Security are involved in the effort to combat transnational organized crime. The Coast Guard, Navy, Customs and Border Protection, FBI, Drug Enforcement Agency and Immigration and Customs Enforcement along with allied and international partner agencies play a role in counter-drug operations.
The Coast Guard increased U.S. and allied presence in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Basin, which are known drug transit zones off of Central and South America, as part of its Western Hemisphere Strategy.
The cutter Diligence is a 210-foot medium endurance cutter home ported in Wilmington, North Carolina. The cutter Seneca is a 270-foot medium endurance cutter home ported in Boston, Massachusetts.