USCG Cutter Returns Home With $115 Million Worth Of Seized Drugs After 38-day Mission In Caribbean

The crew of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Resolute returned to their homeport in St. Petersburg, Florida, with about $115 million worth of seized narcotics.

The seizure includes about 9,690 pounds of cocaine and 5,490 pounds of marijuana, which they seized during their recent 38-day mission in the Caribbean.

The crew also handed over five suspected smugglers to the US Department of Justice for federal prosecution.

The team’s mission, part of Joint Interagency Task Force-South (JIATF-South) operations, was to disrupt drug trafficking routes in the Atlantic, Caribbean and Pacific, preventing illegal narcotics from reaching U.S. shores.

The patrolling was full of high-risk interdictions. In one operation, Resolute’s crew tracked a high-speed “go-fast” vessel across 40 miles of rough seas with six-foot waves, assisted by a Dutch aircraft.

Coast Guard Cutter Resolute — Image Credits: USCG

The vessel’s crew destroyed their cargo. Later, during a night patrol, the team boarded a suspicious sailing vessel in the Caribbean, finding about 1,653 pounds of hidden cocaine and arresting the suspected smugglers onboard the vessel.

The two seizures saved over $58 million worth of narcotics from entering the U.S.

Commander Ian Starr, the commanding officer of Resolute, praised his team for their expertise and resilience in challenging conditions and highlighted the team’s cohesion, excellence, and professionalism, as per the sources.

The Resolute crew worked with international partners, including the Royal Netherlands Navy’s HNLMS Holland, to hand over contraband and suspected smugglers for prosecution in the United States.

The crew also assisted in humanitarian missions.

Working with Coast Guard cutters William Trump and Reliance, the team stopped an overloaded vessel carrying 181 Haitian migrants near Haiti. The team safely transferred the migrants to the cutter Reliance, ensuring timely shelter and care.

The Resolute crew also conducted flight operations with an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Miami and completed its Aviation Standardization Inspection.

These drills comprised 30 helicopter operations, such as in-flight refueling and vertical replenishment, which prepared the crew for various mission requirements.

The crew returned to St. Petersburg after their deployment to the Caribbean but were soon redeployed for storm support after Hurricane Milton. They assisted in search and rescue operations alongside the cutters Thetis and Pablo Valent.

The 210-foot Coast Guard Cutter Resolute, based in St. Petersburg, performs various missions across the Western Hemisphere, including counter-narcotics, migrant interdiction, federal fisheries enforcement, and search and rescue for the United States Coast Guard Atlantic Area Command, which is headquartered in Virginia.

Reference: US Coast Guard

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