Coast Guard nabs huge cocaine haul, arrests suspected drug smugglers

By Mike Glenn - The Washington Times - Friday, September 25, 2026

A Coast Guard cutter seized more than 25,000 pounds of cocaine in three incidents last month as part of Operation Pacific Viper, a counternarcotics mission in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, military officials said this week.

On Sept. 11, the cutter Tampa intercepted a high-performance powerboat operating south of Costa Rica. Coast Guard personnel discovered about 6,800 pounds of cocaine aboard the go-fast vessel and apprehended three suspected drug smugglers.

The Coast Guard later sank the boat as a navigation hazard, officials said Thursday.

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“We own the sea, and Operation Pacific Viper is proving that every day,” said Adm. Kevin Lunday, commandant of the Coast Guard. “Coast Guard crews are taking the fight to narcoterrorists in the maritime domain, denying them the routes they rely on to move drugs, money and violence while protecting the homeland and disrupting transnational criminal organizations far from U.S. shores.”

The Tampa was operating south of Panama on Sept. 15 when its assigned helicopter spotted the suspicious high-speed vessel. A second powerboat was spotted when the cutter arrived on scene. The Coast Guard intercepted more than 15,000 pounds of cocaine and apprehended six suspected smugglers.

The next day, a maritime patrol aircraft reported another high-speed boat south of Panama. The Tampa’s helicopter crew fired warning shots to stop the vessel, Coast Guard officials said.

The Tampa seized more than 3,400 pounds of cocaine in the third mission and arrested four suspected narcotics traffickers, officials said.

“Thanks to the hard work of the brave men and women of the U.S. Coast Guard, more than 9 million lethal doses of cocaine will never reach our shores,” Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said in a statement. “President Trump promised to make America safe again, and stopping these drugs from infecting our communities is exactly how we do it. DHS is committed to keeping our borders secure, on land and at sea.”