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2 boat crews charged with drug runningBy Times staff writer© St. Petersburg Times published November 5, 2002 TAMPA -- The U.S. Coast Guard has intercepted two boats and accused those aboard of smuggling cocaine in the eastern Pacific Ocean. The interceptions resulted in 14 arrests and netted more than 5 tons of cocaine. The first arrests came Oct. 25 off the west coast of Guatemala when the Coast Guard saw crew members on the the fishing vessel Martita Lau throwing bales of cocaine overboard, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Tampa. Ten sailors were arrested, and 3 tons of cocaine recovered. The second arrests came four days later off the west coast of Colombia when crew members threw cocaine overboard and set the boat on fire, authorities said. Four sailors were arrested, and more than 2 tons of cocaine were recovered. All of those arrested face drug distribution charges. The two interdictions were part of an ongoing Tampa-based investigation dubbed Operation Panama Express, which has resulted in the recovery of more than 140 tons of cocaine from boats in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean.
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