Coast Guard Cutter Vigilant Crew Returns Home After Caribbean Patrol

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Vigilant returned home June 23 to Cape Canaveral after a two-month Caribbean patrol, the Coast Guard 7th District said in a release.

The crew’s
patrol focused on enforcing U.S. federal laws by conducting boardings of U.S.
and international vessels throughout the Caribbean basin while working with
other government agencies and international partners to maintain national
security.

While on
patrol, the crew ensured the safe return of 50 Haitian migrants to their home
country after their illegal and dangerous voyage was disrupted by the crew of
the Coast Guard Cutter Robert Yered, a fast-response cutter homeported in
Miami. The crew was also involved in a search for a person reported to be in
the water after falling overboard from his sailing vessel.

The Vigilant
crew interdicted a go-fast vessel illegally smuggling 7,800 pounds of garlic
from Haiti to the Dominican Republic. Garlic smuggling is a global issue on the
rise and has had negative impacts on the agricultural industry in the Dominican
Republic in the last few years.

Upon hearing
of the interdiction, the Dominican navy sent a ship to meet the Vigilant to
take over the case for the prosecution. The contraband was valued at about
$30,000 and was the largest Coast Guard seizure of its kind.

During their
59-day patrol, the crew worked with agencies such as the Jamaican Defense
Force, Royal Bahamian Defense Force, Dominican navy, U.S. Drug Enforcement
Agency and the U.S. Navy.

The Vigilant
is a multimission 210-foot medium-endurance cutter whose missions include
illegal drug and migrant interdiction as well as search and rescue. The
Vigilant patrols throughout the Caribbean basin and Atlantic seaboard to ensure
safety of life at sea and enforce international and domestic laws.