Coast Guard Offloads $23 Million in Cocaine in St. Petersburg

More than 1,500 pounds of cocaine worth $23 million that was seized by the U.S. Coast Guard near the Dominican Republic was offloaded in St. Petersburg Tuesday

More than 1,500 pounds of cocaine worth about $23 million that was seized by the U.S. Coast Guard near the Dominican Republic was offloaded in St. Petersburg Tuesday, officials said.

Crew from the Coast Guard Cutter Venturous offloaded the cocaine after returning from a 40-day patrol.


The cocaine was seized on Oct. 11 as part of Operation Caribbean Guard, according to a Coast Guard news release.

According to the Coast Guard, an aircraft had spotted a suspicious 35-foot vessel south of the Dominican Republic. When Venturous responded, the crew of the vessel began throwing packages overboard.

Coast Guard crew members recovered 28 bales which later tested positive for cocaine.

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