⏱ 2 min read
A brazen cocaine smuggling operation was foiled off the coast of Puerto Rico on April 28-29, 2026, when US Customs and Border Protection agents intercepted a 30-foot yacht carrying 1,418 pounds of the deadly drug.
The interdiction unfolded just before 11 PM when an Air and Marine Operations Multi-Role Enforcement Aircraft detected a suspicious vessel about 35 nautical miles southeast of Puerto Rico. A Blackhawk helicopter kept watch as two coastal interceptor vessels from Ponce and Fajardo closed in.
As the suspect vessel was intercepted, agents fired two warning shots, prompting the operator to stop. Charlie G. Marval-Henriquez, Jhoan A. Rodríguez-Núñez, and Josué A. Rodríguez-Núñez, all Venezuelan nationals, were taken into custody.
The trio was charged with possession with intent to distribute and importing cocaine, a crime that can land them in prison for decades.
The operation highlights the relentless pursuit of US authorities to dismantle transnational cocaine trafficking networks.
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📋 Key Facts
- Crime: Drug Trafficking
- Defendant: Puerto Rico
- Location: PR
- Source: DOJ Press Release
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