A Coast Guard Cutter Legare crew member greets his four-legged friend at the pier in Portsmouth, Va., Wednesday. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Brandon Hillard)
PORTSMOUTH, Va. — The crew of U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Legare (WMEC 912) returned to their homeport Wednesday, after an 11-week counter narcotics deployment that included key partner nation engagements and search and rescue operations throughout the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea.
Legare patrolled more than 15,000 nautical miles in support of Joint Interagency Task Force South and the Seventh and Eleventh Coast Guard Districts, working in conjunction with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, and federal agents from throughout the U.S., the Royal Netherlands Navy, and partner nation coast guards in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific Ocean.
During the patrol, Legare successfully interdicted four smuggling vessels, including one specially designed low-profile craft, and seized more than 7,000 pounds of illicit narcotics, valued at approximately $67 million. The crew also offloaded approximately 24,700 pounds of cocaine and 3,892 pounds of marijuana, worth an estimated $475 million, at Base Miami Beach Sept. 15, 2022.
The offloaded drugs were interdicted in the international waters of the Caribbean Sea and the Eastern Pacific Ocean by crews from:
- His Netherlands Majesty’s Ship HNLMS Groningen (P843) of the Royal Netherlands Navy and embarked U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment 101
- U.S. Navy ship USS Billings (LCS 15) and embarked Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment LEDET 401
- Coast Guard Cutter James (WMSL 754)
- Coast Guard Cutter Legare (WMEC 912)
Legare also conducted an engagement with the Belize Coast Guard, strengthening an important partnership in our joint efforts to combat transnational criminal organizations at-sea and enhance maritime security within the Americas.
“Legare’s crew has worked tirelessly for nearly three months, and as a result significantly fewer drugs will make it to American streets. I am inspired by the way the crew respects and takes care of each other while executing these incredibly dangerous operations. I am honored to have the opportunity to sail alongside them,” said Cmdr. Jeremy Greenwood, commanding officer of Legare.
Legare is a 270-foot Famous-class medium endurance cutter stationed in Portsmouth, Virginia. Legare’s missions include law enforcement, search and rescue, protection of living marine resources, homeland security and defense operations, international training, and humanitarian operations. Legare patrols the offshore waters from Maine to Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, the Eastern Pacific, and the Caribbean.
