Cocaine worth $5.6 million seized in Puerto Rico, three Dominicans arrested

San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The U.S. Coast Guard in San Juan reported Tuesday the seizure of a shipment of 284 kilograms of cocaine, valued at $5.6 million, west of Puerto Rico.

The shipment was unloaded in San Juan the day before. The vessel carrying it was intercepted in the Mona Channel, separating the Dominican Republic from Puerto Rico and a standard drug trafficking route.

The vessel was detected north of the island of Mona, and, as the Coast Guard approached, its occupants threw multiple bales of suspected contraband into the water and fled into Dominican Republic territorial waters.

According to the Coast Guard statement, the Dominican Republic Navy intercepted the suspect vessel and detained the three Dominican nationals on board.

Meanwhile, the Coast Guard vessel Joseph Napier’s crew recovered eleven bales thrown into the water, which tested positive for cocaine.

Special agents supporting the Caribbean Corridor Strike Force lead the investigation into this case.