Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel joined forces with military entities to successfully recover approximately 1.9 tons of cocaine and disrupted a Caribbean smuggling attempt.
The Air and Marine Operations (AMO) National Air Security Operations Center—Jacksonville (NASOC—J) P-3 crew, United States Navy (USN) and the United States Coast Guard (USCG) joined CBP in the effort, which denied narcotics traffickers of approximately $65 million in illicit proceeds.
On Dec. 18, a NASOC—J P-3 Airborne Early Warning (AEW) crew detected a suspect 45-foot go fast vessel (GFV) and coordinated with Joint Interagency Task Force—South (JIATF—S) and the USS Comstock (LSD-45) with embedded USCG law enforcement detachment crew for interdiction. The USN and USCG crews recovered 66 bales of cocaine, totaling 3,781 lbs at sea weight.
The President and Secretary of Defense announced the Enhanced Counter Narcotics mission on April 1, 2020. Since that time, the Department of State, Department of Defense, and other federal agencies have strengthened methods and improved operations to obstruct the drug shipments from transnational criminal organizations. The P-3 aircraft operate throughout North and South America to defend domestic borders while preventing attempts to smuggle persons or contraband.
Additionally, Air and Marine Operations anticipate and confront security threats through aviation and maritime law enforcement expertise through innovative capabilities and partnerships at the border and beyond.