Pubdate: Mon, 04 Apr 2016
Source: Lookout (CN BC)
Contact:  2016 The Lookout
Website: http://www.lookoutnewspaper.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1178
Author: Peter Mallett

HMCS SASKATOON DOLES OUT SMUGGLER BLUES

Sailors on board HMCS Saskatoon have just made the life of drug 
smugglers and organized crime a little less lucrative after 
participating in a sizable drug seizure in the Eastern Pacific.

The Maritime Coastal Defence Vessel with its crew of 38 and a United 
States Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment seized 10 bales of 
cocaine weighing approximately 360 kilograms on March 19.

The operation off the coast of Central America is part of Operation 
Caribbe, part of Canada's contribution to a multinational effort 
against transnational criminal organizations in the Pacific Ocean and 
Caribbean Sea dubbed Operation Martillo.

"It's not just getting drugs off the street in Canada and the United 
States; Operation Caribbe is also about keeping the money out of the 
pockets of bad people who are destabilizing the governments of 
nations in South and Central America," said Lieutenant-Commander Todd 
Bacon, Saskatoon's Commanding Officer.

The seizure came about when occupants on a panga-style fishing boat 
jettisoned their illicit contraband in the water before fleeing at a 
high speed.

Saskatoon approached the smugglers and deployed the U.S. Coast Guard 
Law Enforcement Detachment team in rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIB) 
to board the vessel.

The seizure by Saskatoon brings the total cocaine seized by Canadian 
warships in the month of March to nearly 700 kg. Earlier this month, 
the Halifax-based HMCS Summerside was involved in the boarding of a 
12-metre vessel in the international waters off the coast of 
Nicaragua that led to the seizure of 16 bales of cocaine weighing 324 kg.

Four Royal Canadian Navy ships were deployed in early February and 
included HMCS Edmonton and HMCS Moncton, which concluded its 
deployment on March 26.

LCdr Bacon said that the latest drug seizure is another example of 
multi-national teamwork and cooperation between governments.

"There wasn't one specific individual who stood out in the seizure, 
but it really was a complete team effort," he says. "The integration 
of law enforcement, intelligence and communications and support staff 
on board our vessel and onshore has been seamless."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom