The U.S. Coast Guard discovered a stowaway with over 500 pounds of cocaine and a firearm on a barge near Puerto Rico. This incident marks the second time this year that a stowaway carrying a significant amount of drugs was detained in the same harbor.

Coast Guard Cutter crews and a Homeland Security task force collaborated in this operation. They boarded the Crimson Clover barge in San Juan Harbor and located the stowaway. The stowaway was in possession of a gun and nine bales of cocaine, weighing around 237.75 kilograms or approximately 524 pounds.

The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Isaac Mayo later transferred the alleged drug smuggler, the weapon, and the cocaine to law enforcement partners at Coast Guard Base San Juan. The cocaine’s estimated street value was $4.8 million. The suspect’s identity remains undisclosed. The Coast Guard provided images showing the barge, confiscated drugs, and officers unloading the bales onto the shore.

Lt. Cmdr. Ross Markham stated that a combination of experience and resources led to a successful boarding and subsequent drug discovery. This operation helps prevent smugglers from using commercial vessels for trafficking activities.

The arrest and drug recovery are part of increased efforts by the U.S. to combat drug trafficking and human smuggling in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean. Besides routine Coast Guard drug interceptions, a campaign including military strikes on drug-related vessels has resulted in over 200 casualties.

In February, authorities arrested another stowaway found in a Puerto Rican harbor with 789 pounds of cocaine. The Coast Guard retrieved the suspect and ten contraband bales from the water. In March, officials seized $12 million worth of cocaine from a vessel off the island’s northern coast.