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(Trends Wide Spanish) — The United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) confirmed the seizure in Puerto Rico of 398 kilograms of cocaine hidden aboard a passenger ship from the Dominican Republic.
As CBP spokesman Jeffrey Quiñones confirmed to Trends Wide, no one was arrested during the operation and the incident is under investigation.
A press release from the federal agency on January 3 points out that the estimated value of the confiscated cocaine is US$ 9.1 million.
The discovery was made on December 26 at the Pan-American Pier in San Juan during a routine inspection of the M/V Kydon, a vessel that transports passengers and cargo between the Puerto Rican capital and Santo Domingo, adds the official note published on December 3. January.
“CBP officers removed a board covering the floor of the loading dock and found several brick-shaped rectangular packages covered in plastic. Three hundred fifty-five (355) packages were recovered from the loading dock. A field test was positive for the properties of cocaine,” the text explained.
For his part, Roberto Vaquero, director of Field Operations for Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands, stated that the “experienced CBP agents remain vigilant, using their training and available tools to prevent dangerous drugs from entering to the country”.
In response to Trends Wide, the executive director of the Puerto Rico Ports Authority (APPR), Joel A. Pizá Batiz, thanked the investigative and intelligence work carried out by federal agencies and highlighted the close collaboration between the APPR and the Customs and Border Protection agents.
The vessel where the drugs were seized is owned by the Ferries del Caribe company and has a cargo capacity of 1,669 linear meters, and space for at least 70 cars and 1,750 passengers.
Trends Wide contacted the company Ferries del Caribe for comment, but no response has been received so far.
CBP has seized 34,000 kilos of drugs in the first two months of fiscal year 2023, according to the CBP data portal.
With information from Yenny Sánchez
