The bales of seized cocaine on display (Photo © État-major des Armées / France)
MARIGOT--Surveillance frigate Ventôse, during an air-sea surveillance patrol, made a seizure of 435 kilograms of cocaine from a coastal vessel northwest of Guadeloupe on Friday evening, February 10.
The intervention of the Ventôse crew, carried out in difficult sea conditions, revealed the presence of suspicious bundles on board the Grenada-flagged vessel. The cargo tested positive for cocaine.
The Grenadian authorities having waived their jurisdiction in favour of France, the four crew members and the cargo were brought back to Fort-de-France by the Ventôse and handed over to the judicial authorities. Some 19 bales of cocaine were seized, with a total weight of 435kg.
This is the second seizure by the Ventôse in less than a month. Since the beginning of the year, the Armed Forces in the West Indies have seized nearly 1.5 tonnes of narcotics, removed from the distribution networks (seized goods and goods thrown into the sea).
This operation, led by the admiral commanding the Antilles maritime zone, by delegation of the Préfet of Martinique, the government's delegate for action by the State at sea, was carried out with the support of French Customs and the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs.
The investigations on land were carried out by the Anti-Drug Office OFAST under the responsibility of the Prosecutor's Office of the Specialised Inter-Regional Jurisdiction (JIRS) of Fort-de-France.
