FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (CBS12) — In just three days, federal crews made two major drug busts off Fort Lauderdale, seizing smuggling boats carrying over $5 million in cocaine.
According to a Saturday news release, a boat crew from U.S. Coast Guard Station Fort Lauderdale, working with officers from U.S. Customs and Border Protection and agents from Homeland Security Investigations, seized about 745 pounds of cocaine worth an estimated $5.6 million from two suspected smuggling boats near Port Everglades.
One boat was stopped near the Fort Lauderdale sea buoy on Monday with help from a CBP K9 unit, and the second boat was stopped on Wednesday, seven miles east of Port Everglades.
See also: Deputy saves baby, unconscious driver, after Florida carjacking ends in fiery crash
Lt. Justin Dadlani, commanding officer, Station Fort Lauderdale, praised the crew’s teamwork with partner agencies:
The Coast Guard is in the business of saving lives, and every kilogram of these drugs kept off our streets represents lives saved. I couldn’t be more proud of the professionalism of the crew and our continued partnerships with our partners with Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations.
The drug interception came days before 17,750 pounds of cocaine was offloaded in Port Everglades following four interdictions in international waters in January, according to previous reports.