US Coast Guard says a Dominican died after it fired at a fleeing boat carrying $11M worth of cocaine

The U.S. Coast Guard said a person from the Dominican Republic died after it fired at a fleeing boat in the Caribbean Sea that was smuggling an estimated $11 million worth of cocaine.
The agency said Thursday that Coast Guard officials aboard a U.S. Navy ship fired “warning shots and disabling fire” during the Jan. 1 incident and found an injured crew member when they boarded.
The statement said that the person received first aid and was medically evacuated to the Dominican Republic, where they died. The person was not identified.
Fatal shootings involving the Coast Guard are rare.
“The Coast Guard takes any loss of life seriously and is working to investigate the incident,” spokesman Lt. Cmdr. John W. Beal said.
No further details were immediately available.
Two other suspected smugglers were arrested and 848 pounds (385 kilograms) of cocaine were seized from the boat, according to the Coast Guard.
The U.S. Coast Guard has seized more than a ton of cocaine near Florida, with an estimated street value of $32.2 million.
The cocaine was hauled in during two separate seizures Tuesday in the Caribbean Sea, leading to the arrest of six smugglers who will face prosecution in federal court by the U.S. Justice Department.
"The crew of USCG Cutter Margaret Norvell offloaded more than 2,450 pounds of cocaine worth approximately $32.2 million in Miami," the Coast Guard wrote in a post on X.
"Coast Guard crews continue to deliver on our important missions of homeland and maritime security to save lives and thwart transnational criminal organizations operating in the Caribbean."
The Coast Guard also credited USCG Cutter Richard Dixon, USCG Cutter Dauntless and Joint Interagency Task Force South with helping in the narcotics bust.
"Detecting the interdicting illegal drug traffickers on the high seas involves significant interagency and international coordination," the Coast Guard said.
Last July, Tampa Bay Mayor Jane Castor discovered 70 pounds of cocaine -- valued at $1.1 million -- during a fishing trip off Florida in the Atlantic Ocean. The mayor said the 25 bricks of cocaine were found in a package, floating on the water.
The United States Coast Guard announced Thursday that crews rescued nine migrants near the coast of Punta Cana around 8 p.m. on Jan. 3.
The Coast Guard said aircrews responded to a call of a vessel in distress and an unknown number of people in the water approximately 40 miles offshore.
Coast Guard Cutter Joseph Napier’s crew, along with help from the Dominican Republic Navy, were able to rescue all migrants on board. The Coast Guard said some of the survivors were treated for chemical burns likely caused by coming into contact with the sinking ship’s fuel.
“You often hear us say that unlawful maritime migration is always dangerous and very often deadly. That is not rhetoric or hyperbole, as our Coast Guard crews all too regularly respond to rescue migrants in dire medical need or distress who attempted the journey,” said Lieutenant Commander John W. Beal, Coast Guard District Seven public affairs officer. “Coast Guard crews and our partners in Homeland Security Task Force-Southeast will continue to rescue and repatriate anyone attempting to enter the U.S. unlawfully by sea. Do not take to the sea and risk your life just to be sent back. Use the safe, orderly and lawful pathways DHS and the State Department made available.”
The migrants were placed on the Dominican Republic Navy vessel and returned to the Dominican Republic for repatriation and further medical treatment, according to the Coast Guard.

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