WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — On March 3, the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf from Alameda, California apprehended four suspected drug smugglers using a self-propelled semi-submerisible off the coast of Panama.
"Transnational organized crime groups continue to adjust their tactics to avoid detection indicated by a recent rise in the use of SPSS vessels," Pacific Area Coast Guard commander, Vice Adm. Charles Ray said.
The March cocaine bust marks a rise in self-propelled semi-submerisible interdictions by the US Coast Guard. In 2015, the service removed more than 319,000 pounds (159.5 tons) of cocaine as a result of such interdictions.
Coast Guard drug interdiction accounts for more than half of all US government seizures of cocaine each year, according to the service.
