From The Tampa Times, it looks like the street value of St. Petersburg just got higher…
St. Petersburg became a temporary home to almost 4,000 pounds of cocaine late Wednesday when the Coast Guard unloaded the captured loot. The two tons of coke were confiscated from two vessels near the Dominican Republic. Authorities estimated the value at over $45 million dollars! After the crew had unloaded the drugs, they were shipped via truck to an undisclosed location.
How did this drug bust come about? In late November, a coat guard airplane found another ship carrying over 2,000 pounds of cocaine. When the ship’s crew saw they were being watched, they dumped the cocaine overboard and escaped. The next day, a coast guard cutter came to the scene and began to locate the drug bales along with capturing ANOTHER ship that was carrying a trafficking amount of cocaine. The bales were sent to the St. Petersburg coast guard station where they were unloaded.
Is drug smuggling increasing? In the past six months, Carribean authorities and the coast guard have captured 20,000 pounds of cocaine and 7,000 pounds of marijuana for a total street value of almost 260 million!
The beat goes on…while the coast guard was unloading the cocaine in St. Pete Wednesday, another coast guard cutter captured 5,000 pounds of cocaine on Florida’s east coast. Unfortunately the crew escaped capture.As Pinellas drug defense lawyers, we have seen all sorts of drug crimes, from a simple joint to major drug house busts. What many people may not realize is that just because the drugs were sent to Pinellas county, the criminal case will most likely not occur here. Due to the fact that the drugs crossed state lines and/or international waters, this will likely be a federal criminal drug charge. In federal courts, the potential punishments are much more severe and the rules of criminal defense are different.
Have you or a loved one been arrested for drug trafficking or a federal offense? Then call the former prosecutors of Blake & Dorsten, P.A. now! These criminal defense lawyers are experienced trial attorneys that are fighting for you.
The defense attorneys handle all criminal and personal injury cases throughout the gulf coast of Florida including St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Largo, Dunedin, Treasure Island, Kenneth city, Pinellas park and Seminole. Call Blake & Dorsten, P.A. at 727.286.6141 or contact them by hitting the link. Blake & Dorsten…when your case matters!