Over $1 million worth of cocaine has washed ashore in the Florida Keys as a result of the strong winds that rocked parts of the state after Hurricane Debby made landfall on Monday, Customs and Border Patrol informed.
Concretely, U.S. Border Patrol acting chief patrol Agent Samuel Briggs II said on social media that 25 packages containing about 70 pounds of cocaine were found in the area. He posted images of some of the packages, which feature a red logo over a black backdrop.
The official added that a person alerted authorities after finding the drugs on the beach, close from a transit hub for drugs in the Caribbean Sea. It is the latest of several such episodes that have taken place recently in the state.
Hurricane Debby blew 25 packages of cocaine (70 lbs.) onto a beach in the Florida Keys. Good Samaritan discovered the drugs & contacted authorities. U.S. Border Patrol seized the drugs, which have a street value of over $1 million dollars.#Hurricane #Debby #Florida #floridakeys pic.twitter.com/nsjKu6qm8V
— Samuel Briggs II (@USBPChiefMIP) August 5, 2024
In late July, a Florida diver partaking in the annual two-day lobster mini-season found a similar package. According to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, the diver was in the ocean about a mile off shore near the Upper Keys, when he found the cocaine.
The photo released by the sheriff's office shows the cocaine wrapped and labeled with a Psycho Bunny logo. Andrew Linhardt, a sheriff's office spokesman said that they turned over the contraband found by the diver to U.S. Border Patrol.
Moreover, in June, the U.S. Coast Guard announced that it had seized more than 14,153 pounds of cocaine—worth more than $186 million—from waters spanning between southern Florida and the Caribbean.
And in May, a Florida Keys beachgoer discovered a suspicious package along the beach and notified the authorities. U.S. Border Patrol agents recovered the package which was believed to contain 65 pounds of cocaine valued at approximately $1 million.
Also this year the U.S. Coast Guard seized over a ton of cocaine worth close to $32 million near Florida waters. Due to the amount of lost cocaine found in waters near Florida, experts say that "cocaine sharks" may be consuming drugs underwater.
"If these cocaine bales are a point source of pollution, it's very plausible [sharks] can be affected by this chemical. Cocaine is so soluble that any of those packages open just a little, the structural integrity is destroyed and the drug is in the water," Tracy Fanara, a Florida-based environmental engineer told The Guardian last year.
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