Massive Cocaine Bust Worth Over $1 Billion In Philadelphia Port

The U.S. authorities seized 15,000 kilograms of cocaine worth over $1 billion from a ship docked at a port in Philadelphia. This is being described as one of the largest drug hauls in the United States’ history.

The U.S. attorney’s office said law enforcement agents discovered the recreational drug on one of the ships at the Packer Marine Terminal in Philadelphia. The agents arrested two crew members. The two, according to CNN, have been accused of conspiring to possess a controlled substance on board a vessel subject to U.S. jurisdiction. Federal investigators said that the two men have confessed and provided details of their operations.

A federal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on Tuesday said the drugs were found in seven shipping containers on board the Mediterranean Shipping Company - MSC Gayane .

US Attorney William M. McSwain, in a tweet, said this amount of cocaine could kill millions, millions of people. “My office is committed to keeping our borders secure and streets safe from deadly narcotics.”

CNN said Department of Homeland Security Special Agent Eric Mooney in an affidavit stated that one of the accused, second mate Ivan Durasevic, was to be paid about $50,000 in cryptocurrency for loading the cocaine onto the ship. Reports said 14 different boats approached the ship at sea at different locations with bales of cocaine wrapped in netting. Durasevic, with assistance from the second accused, Fonofaavae Tiasaga, a seaman, used a crane to load the bales of cocaine onto the vessel. Tiasaga confessed to helping load the cocaine and consealing it with the legitimate cargo.

In an official statement, the Mediterranean Shipping Company said they are taking the matter very seriously. It expressed gratitude to the authorities for identifying any suspected abuse of its services. “Unfortunately, shipping and logistics companies are from time to time affected by trafficking problems. MSC has a longstanding history of cooperating with U.S. Federal law enforcement agencies to help disrupt illegal narcotics trafficking and works closely with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP),” it said.

Meanwhile, reports said that this drug haul is the latest along the East Coast. This year, the authorities have been making big busts. In March, drug dogs found 538 kilograms of cocaine worth about $38 million in Philadelphia. The customs agents, in the month of February, seized 1,451 kilograms of cocaine valued at $77 million at the Port of New York and New Jersey.