Coast Guard, Partner Agencies Intercept 1,400 Pounds of Marijuana

SAN DIEGO —
Agencies from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, including the Coast
Guard, detected and interdicted a suspected smuggling vessel carrying about
1,400 pounds of marijuana 40 miles southwest of San Diego on July 25, the Coast
Guard 11th District said in a release.

Customs and
Border Protection Air and Marine Operations (CBP AMO) crews notified
watchstanders at San Diego’s Joint Harbor Operations Center (JHOC) of suspected
smuggling activity aboard a 35-foot boat at about 7 p.m. The watchstanders
diverted the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Dorado (WPB 87306) that was
conducting a routine counter-smuggling patrol in the area.

Dorado
arrived on scene at about 10:30 p.m. after being vectored in by CBP AMO crews.
The Dorado crew launched their interceptor boat with a boarding team that
discovered the marijuana aboard the suspicious vessel. Two suspected smugglers
were detained.

Dorado’s crew
transported the marijuana and suspected smugglers to San Diego, where CBP’s AMO
crew seized the suspected smuggling vessel and Homeland Security Investigation’s
Marine Task Force took custody of the suspected smugglers and contraband.

“The
crew of Dorado had a very successful mission while patrolling the waters off
the coast of San Diego, and we at the district headquarters could not be
prouder of them,” said Capt. Arthur Snyder, Coast Guard 11th District’s
chief of response.

The Regional
Coordinating Mechanism (ReCoM) is another example of the evolution of joint
operations among interagency partners. Located in San Diego, Los Angeles and
San Francisco, the ReCoM partnerships include the U.S. Coast Guard, CBP’s
Office of Air and Marine, Office of Field Operations, U.S. Border Patrol and
ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations in cooperation with state and local law
enforcement partners operating along the California coast.

Dorado is an
87-foot patrol boat homeported in Crescent City.