MIAMI – The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Stone’s crew offloaded roughly 49,010 kilos of illicit narcotics value greater than $362 million at Port Everglades on Wednesday. U.S. Director of Nationwide Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard joined the Coast Guard for the announcement, praising the operation for instance of empowered management and inter-agency coordination.
“The success we’re seeing at this time is what occurs when now we have a Commander in Chief who empowers leaders, Coast Guard women and men, service members throughout the drive, intelligence analysts, and different professionals to do the job they signed as much as do,” Gabbard stated.
📍 NEW from Miami, Florida@DNIGabbard joins the crew of @USCG Cutter Stone at Port Everglades to announce the offload of over 49,000 lbs of illicit cocaine, value greater than $362M.
“The success that we’re seeing right here at this time is what occurs when now we have a Commander in Chief who… pic.twitter.com/aylMAdz4oJ
— Workplace of the DNI (@ODNIgov) November 19, 2025
This seizure marks the most important quantity of cocaine seized by a single cutter in a single patrol in Coast Guard historical past.
A blow to narco-terrorism
Capt. Anne O’Connell, commanding officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Stone, praised the crew for his or her efficiency through the deployment.
“This offload demonstrates our elevated posture and continued success within the combat towards narco-terrorism and transnational felony organizations,” O’Connell stated. “The Coast Guard, at the side of our inter-agency and worldwide companions, continues to patrol areas generally related to drug trafficking within the Japanese Pacific, denying smugglers entry to maritime routes by which they transfer illicit medication to our U.S. land and sea borders.”
The seizure was carried out underneath Operation Pacific Viper, a surge in counter-drug operations supposed to disrupt the stream of illicit medication, which officers stated gas cartels and contribute to the manufacturing and trafficking of unlawful fentanyl.
Interagency coordination
The drug interdictions had been a collaborative effort involving a number of specialised models, together with the Coast Guard’s Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron Jacksonville and watchstanders from each the Southeast and Southwest Coast Guard Districts.
Your complete operation was coordinated with U.S. Southern Command’s Joint Interagency Process Pressure-South based mostly in Key West, which is accountable for detecting and monitoring aerial and maritime drug transit. Interdictions within the Japanese Pacific Ocean are overseen by the Coast Guard’s Southwest District.
Based on the Coast Guard, about 80% of interdictions of U.S.-bound medication happen at sea. Officers emphasised that interdicting these shipments denies felony organizations greater than half a billion {dollars} in illicit income and supplies key intelligence for additional felony investigations underneath initiatives like Panama Specific.
The USCGC Stone is one in every of 4 418-foot Legend-class nationwide safety cutters homeported in Charleston, South Carolina.
