US Coast Guard Burns Boat Carrying Nearly 13,000 Pounds of Cocaine in the Pacific

A U.S. Coast Guard crew member stands guard among wrapped packages of cocaine and marijuana offloaded from Coast Guard Cutter Stone at Port Everglades in Port Everglades, Fla., on March 20, 2025. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The U.S. Coast Guard captured seven suspected smugglers transporting nearly 13,000 pounds of cocaine in the Pacific over the weekend and subsequently burned the boat until it sank, as part of Operation Pacific Viper.

“After intercepting one drug smuggling vessel, Stone sank the vessel in a live-fire exercise, removing it permanently from cartel use,” reads a Coast Guard Facebook post from Sept. 9.