| Office of Public Affairs U.S. Coast Guard |
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| Press Release |
Date: Dec. 5, 2007 Contact: Natalie Granger (202) 372-4620 |
Coast Guard Announces Record Drug Seizures
Successful Maritime Interdiction Forces Smugglers to Extreme Tactics
**Interviews and Video Available**
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Thad Allen will announce the service's record drug seizure year tomorrow at noon at the Coast Guard Headquarters, 2100 Second St., SW, Washington, D.C.
The Coast Guard will be joined by its federal and international partners to discuss successful interdiction efforts and how those efforts are driving smugglers to adopt extreme tactics, including the use of expensive semi-submersibles, liquid cocaine, and indirect and dangerous sea routes. Some of the dramatic interdictions include:
- In September, the Coast Guard and its partners interdicted a vessel loaded with 3,600 gallons of cocaine dissolved in diesel fuel, a technique used by smugglers to avoid detection. The liquid cocaine could be converted into 15,800 pounds of pure cocaine.
- In August, Coast Guard, Navy and Customs and Border Protection crews interdicted and boarded a self-propelled, semi-submersible vessel loaded with an estimated $352 million of cocaine.
- The Coast Guard made its largest maritime cocaine seizure when it intercepted the Panamanian vessel Gatun carrying more than 33,500 pounds of the narcotic -- or approximately 20 tons -- in March 2007.
In addition to the Commandant, speakers for Thursday's event will include John Walters, director, White House Office of National Drug Control Policy and Mike Braun, chief of operations, Drug Enforcement Agency. Officials from the Department of Defense, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Customs and Border Patrol, as well as representatives from France, United Kingdom, Panama and Mexico will also attend the event.
The Coast Guard is the nation's leading maritime law enforcement agency and is charged with securing America's more than 95,000 miles of coastline.
Please click to view the Top Ten Drug Bust videos.
Please click to view Maritime Law Enforcement History.
Media Note: RSVP by 9:00 a.m. at (202) 372-4620. All attendees must provide media credentials and one other form of identification when entering Coast Guard Headquarters. Media should arrive no later than 11:30 a.m. on the date of the event. A Coast Guard law enforcement boat will be available for tours before 11:00 a.m. with advance notice.
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The U.S. Coast Guard is a military, maritime, multi-mission service within the
Department of Homeland Security dedicated to protecting the safety and security of America.
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