Feds Seize Cocaine From Oil Tanker Bound for L.A.
A detection canine helped confirm the drugs, and prosecutors say a 43-year-old Filipino crewmember confessed to possessing them.
- On Thursday, United States authorities arrested Ceasar Tubay Gelacio, a 43-year-old Filipino crewmember, near the Port of Los Angeles after seizing 500 pounds of cocaine worth approximately $6.4 million from the oil tanker Aquatravesia.
- Law enforcement was notified earlier this month that the Liberian-flagged Aquatravesia was inbound from Ecuador carrying narcotics intended for a Mexican cartel; crewmembers discovered packages hidden in the ship's garbage room.
- After Gelacio confessed to possessing the drugs, the captain secured the narcotics and alerted authorities about radio calls from the cartel attempting to intercept the tanker, prompting United States agents to board Thursday.
- Prosecutors in the Central District California charged Gelacio with importation of a controlled substance, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a statutory maximum of life in federal prison upon conviction.
- The cartel reportedly threatened to board the vessel in Mexican waters if the delivery failed, with officials investigating the planned rendezvous 80 nautical miles from shore as part of the ongoing investigation.
33 Articles
33 Articles
Massive cocaine bust at Port of Los Angeles amid shifting trafficking patterns
Federal authorities seized 500 pounds of cocaine worth an estimated $6.4 million during a joint boarding of a crude oil tanker at the Port of Los Angeles, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement. Agents with Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Coast Guard boarded the tanker Aquatravesia after a Coast Guard drug detection dog alerted the boarding team to suspected contraband. The boarding team uncovered more than 226 ki…
NBC Montana
Feds bust man after 500 pounds of cocaine worth $6.4M found on US-bound tanker
A suspected drug smuggler was arrested off the coast of California after authorities found 500 pounds of cocaine inside a U.S.-bound oil tanker.
Feds seize $6.4M worth of cocaine aboard oil tanker at Port of Los Angeles, arrest suspected cartel smuggler
A suspected drug smuggler was arrested at the Port of Los Angeles after authorities allegedly found $6.4 million worth of cocaine aboard an oil tanker destined for a Mexican cartel.
Feds seize cocaine from oil tanker bound for L.A.
Armed cartel boats allegedly waited off the coast of Mexico for an oil tanker carrying roughly 500 pounds of cocaine before federal authorities intercepted the vessel as it headed toward Southern California, prosecutors announced Friday. The U.S. Department of Justice said investigators recovered approximately 227 kilograms of cocaine aboard the Greek-owned and Liberian-flagged oil tanker [...]
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