MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — The United States Coast Guard’s Resolute crew offloaded about 2,570 pounds of cocaine worth more than $19.3 million and transferred six suspected drug smugglers to federal authorities Thursday at Base Miami Beach, investigators confirmed.
They said drugs were seized during three interdictions in the Caribbean Sea involving the USCGC Tahoma and the USS Billings, which was operating with an embarked Coast Guard law enforcement detachment.
“The success of these interdictions reflects the strength of our partnerships and the persistence of our crews,” wrote Cmdr. Ian Starr, commanding officer of the Resolute, in a news release obtained by Local 10 on Friday. “By stopping these shipments at sea, we are preventing dangerous drugs from reaching our communities and disrupting transnational criminal organizations.”
Investigators said multiple units supported the operations, including a Coast Guard helicopter interdiction squadron, a tactical law enforcement team, watchstanders in the Southeast District and Joint Interagency Task Force South.
The Coast Guard said the offload is part of ongoing efforts to interdict and disrupt the flow of illicit drugs by sea.
Authorities noted that about 80% of drugs bound for the United States are stopped in maritime operations.
The agency reported seizing more than 511,000 pounds of cocaine in 2025 — more than three times its annual average — along with additional seizures tied to expanded counter-narcotics operations in the Eastern Pacific.
Officials said those efforts have denied criminal organizations billions of dollars in illicit revenue and helped prevent dangerous drugs from reaching U.S. communities.
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