MIAMI – Crewmembers from the Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane seized nearly 6,000 pounds of cocaine from a St. Vincent and the Grenadines-flagged vessel in the Caribbean Sea, Dec. 3.
While conducting a routine law-enforcement patrol, the crew of a Customs and Border Protection surveillance aircraft spotted the Olympiakos, a 242-foot coastal freighter, and notified the crew of the Harriet Lane. Crewmembers intercepted the vessel, located the contraband, and detained 11 suspects. The contraband and detainees were turned over to U.S. law-enforcement authorities. Disposition of the vessel is still being determined.
The seized cocaine has an estimated U.S. street value of more than $83 million.
The Harriet Lane is a 270-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in Portsmouth, Va.
