USS Freedom Has First Sea Drug Bust

The nation’s first Littoral Combat Ship, built in Marinette, the USS Freedom (LCS 1), achieved its first drug seizure on Tuesday, Feb. 22, in the Western Caribbean when it disrupted a high-speed “go-fast” vessel and recovered more than a quarter of a ton of cocaine.

After locating the “go-fast” vessel carrying suspected illicit drugs, USS Freedom launched its MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter. Following interception by the helicopter, the vessel discarded its illicit drugs in the water and entered Colombian waters, where the Colombian Navy took over the tracking and pursuit mission.

USS Freedom’s team then coordinated with a Colombian Navy patrol boat and Colombian patrol aircraft to retrieve seven bales and 72 kilos of cocaine from the water. The drugs were seized by the U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment as evidence.
Read More...