Coast Guard drug offload highlights cocaine’s path from South America to San Diego

The U.S. Department of Justice has unsealed eight indictments related to a narcotics trafficking operation by the Beltrán Leyva organization, a powerful Mexican drug cartel. The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control also announced sanctions against 15 Mexican citizens for their roles in the operation. Among those indicted was Oscar Manuel Gastelum Iribe, alias “El Musico,” who, along with two other men, is alleged to make up the modern-day leadership of the organization. On the same day as these announcements, the U.S. Coast Guard offloaded over 18,000 pounds of seized cocaine, an unrelated event. The indictments and seizure highlight the vast amount of drugs trafficked along maritime routes in the eastern Pacific Ocean.

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