UK Royal Navy intercepts $209.4M worth of cocaine in Caribbean Sea

A unit of the United Kingdom Royal Navy intercepted a narco sub during a surveillance exercise in the Caribbean Sea. The naval officers seized 4,409 pounds of cocaine from the suspected vessel. The narcotics are estimated to be valued around 209.4 million dollars.

The responding officers intercepted the semi-submersed vessel in the waters, which was found with illegal possession of cocaine. The suspected vessel was found 190 nautical miles away from the coast of the Dominican Republic in the south direction.

The operation to seize cocaine is marked as the first-ever narco sub interception for the United Kingdom Royal Navy in the Caribbean Sea. The vessel that the authorities intercepted was identified as HMS Trent.

HMS Trent is an offshore patrol vessel of Batch 2 River class, which is named after the River Trent. The patrolling vessel is dedicated to the unit of the Royal Navy, based at Portsmouth.

The aim of the unit is to maintain security in the region of the Caribbean Sea.

This was the eighth narcotic bust by the UK naval officers in the region in the span of the last eight months. The intention of the presence of UK forces in the Caribbean Sea is to block illegal activities from reaching the nation through this path.

The dedicated team of the Royal Navy successfully intercepted the narcotics for an estimated value of around 980.6 million dollars in the previous months. It was stopped in a way that was reportedly intended to make space in the UK streets for illegal sales.

The most recent operation to seize cocaine worth 209.4 million dollars in the Caribbean Sea was conducted by the Royal Navy along with the assistance of the US Coast Guard and a US Maritime Patrol Aircraft.

At the time of operation, HMS Trent was boarded by Royal Marines from 47 Commando, comprising US Coast Guard personnel and specialist sailors. The responding team searched the vessel and collected the quantity of cocaine, which weighed around 4,409 pounds.

The successful operation in the Caribbean Sea is marked as a major blow to the Caribbean drugs trade. Two suspects are reported to be involved in the illegal Act who were carrying 12 bales of cocaine in the water vessel.

Tim Langford, the Commanding Officer of HMS Trent, said, “It has been a busy yet rewarding eight months for Trent whilst deployed to the Caribbean, and this latest seizure reinforces the utility of the Royal Navy’s Offshore Patrol Vessels in the delivery of this vital tasking.”

He added, “My skilled team and our embarked USCG Law Enforcement Detachment fought challenging conditions to interdict this semi-submersible, rarely seen in the Caribbean, and were rewarded with another record haul.”

Commander Langford also said, “These operations are a team effort and require involvement from every single member of my crew irrespective of their usual role; they can be extremely proud of what they have achieved.”

The previous successful operation on HMS Trent was executed on 26 August. In the operation, the officials busted 1,019 pounds of cocaine worth 48.4 million dollars. In total, Trent seized around 20,854 pounds of drugs worth approximately 981.6 million dollars in the last few months.

With this operation, HMS Trent crossed the mark of HMS Argyll in terms of more seizure as the best smuggler hunter for the Royal Navy in this century. HMS Argyll helped the UK to bust narcotics worth around 811.5 million dollars in the Caribbean during patrols in 2014.