CBP: 518 Pounds of Cocaine Seized From Abandoned Vessel

AGUADILLA, Puerto Rico — U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents recovered 518 pounds of cocaine from an abandoned boat Sunday near Rincon, Puerto Rico, according to a federal news release.

The vessel, a 22-foot white boat with a 60-horsepower engine, was discovered beached about three nautical miles southwest of Black Eagle Beach. Agents from the Ramey Sector Border Patrol arrived at the site after the vessel was first detected by a Caribbean Air and Marine Operations (AMO) unit on June 21.

Eight bales of cocaine, with an estimated street value of $4.2 million, were found aboard the vessel. The drugs were seized by Border Patrol and transferred to Homeland Security Investigations for further processing.

The seizure is part of AMO’s broader mission to disrupt smuggling operations across air and maritime routes throughout the United States, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The Ramey Sector, which covers Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, is the only U.S. Border Patrol sector located outside the continental United States. It oversees approximately 6,000 square miles of coastal land and water.