Coast Guard captures
$43M in cocaine

A Honolulu-based Coast Guard cutter seized nearly 5,000 pounds of cocaine with a street value of $43 million near the Galapagos Islands, officials said yesterday.

A helicopter deployed with the cutter Rush discovered a Colombian-flagged fishing vessel possibly refueling a "go-fast" boat on Sunday, the Coast Guard said in a news release.

When the fast boat tried to flee, the Coast Guard helicopter chased it and the crew fired warning shots at the boat, disabling it with rounds to the engine department, a Coast Guard statement said.

A Coast Guard law enforcement team from the Rush boarded and searched the boat and found 91 bales of cocaine, weighing a total of more than 4,800 pounds.

The Navy's USS Halyburton intercepted the fishing vessel Aventurero and its seven crew members on Monday.

The captain claimed the 55-foot boat was on a legitimate fishing trip, but the Coast Guard found only two fish on board and fishing equipment that didn't work, the Coast Guard statement said.

The 12 detained crewmen from the fishing vessel and the fast boat -- 11 Colombians and one Mexican -- are being held aboard the Halyburton.

The law enforcement team also found two transfer pumps with hoses, two tow lines, and empty drums used for diesel fuel storage. Both the fishing vessel and go-fast boat were destroyed for being hazards to navigation.