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USS Samuel B. Roberts Recovers More Than One Ton of Cocaine

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS081210-10
Release Date: 12/10/2008 8:44:00 AM

From USS Samuel B. Roberts Public Affairs

USS SAMUEL B. ROBERTS, At Sea (NNS) -- While on patrol in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, units assigned U.S. 4th Fleet and the U.S. Coast Guard recovered more than one ton of cocaine Dec. 2.

USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG 58), with embarked Helicopter Anti-submarine Squadron Light 60 (HSL-60) Detachment 2, "Smooth Operators," and U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET) 402 recovered 41 bales of cocaine floating on the surface of the water after pursuing a go-fast vessel into Panamanian territorial waters.

The coordinated actions of the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, and Joint Interagency Task Force-South (JIATF-S) were instrumental to the successful recovery of the narcotics.

Samuel B. Roberts, homeported in Mayport, Fla., is currently deployed to the Eastern Pacific under the operational control of U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command (NAVSO) and U.S. 4th Fleet, conducting counter illicit trafficking operations in support of JIATF-South, U.S. law enforcement and participating nations' drug control policy.

NAVSO, the Navy component command of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), oversees maritime operations throughout Latin America, including exercises and deployments, counter-illicit trafficking support, and theater security cooperation events.

U.S. 4th Fleet is the numbered fleet assigned to NAVSO exercising operational control of U.S. Navy units temporally operating in the SOUTHCOM area of focus, which encompasses the Caribbean, Central and South America and surrounding waters.

For more news from Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command, visit www.navy.mil/local/cusns/.