USS Sampson Seizes 3.5 Tonnes of Cocaine off Central or South America

On June 22, the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Sampson intercepted a smuggling boat in the Eastern Pacific and captured 3.5 tonnes of cocaine - worth $58 million on the U.S. market, more than $120 million in Europe and upwards of $300 million in Australia, depending upon final destination.

Just after 1730 hours that evening, a Navy helicopter aircrew from USS Sampson spotted a suspicious vessel at an undisclosed position in the Eastern Pacific. The crew launched a small boat with a team of officers from Sampson's embarked U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET).

The LEDET crew found three suspected drug smugglers aboard the vessel, all of whom said that they were foreign nationals. The packages aboard the vessel tested positive for cocaine, so the cargo and all three suspects were taken into custody aboard the Sampson. Their stateless vessel was later sunk as a hazard to navigation.

Sampson is one of several Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to deploy to the U.S. Southern Command area of responsibility in an effort to ramp up law enforcement south of the border. The Eastern Pacific smuggling zone is about 1,800-2,200 nautical miles southeast of San Diego; the cocaine delivered from South America into Central America via this small-boat route reaches a variety of destinations, primarily the European market (via Central American container ports) and the American drug market (shipped overland through Mexico).

Other warships recently deployed on a rotation south of the border include USS Cole, USS Gravely, USS Charleston, USS Spruance and USS Stockdale, all playing a role in counter-smuggling and counter-migration missions.