CBP Recovers Abandoned Boat, $24K Of Marijuana Off Coast Of Malibu
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Customs and Border Patrol agents seized 60 pounds of marijuana and an abandoned boat Sunday off the coast of Malibu, the agency tweeted Tuesday afternoon.
According to a release, the agents responded to a report from the Maritime Coordination Center that a 40-foot panga with three powerful outboard engines washed ashore at about 7:45 p.m. at Deer Creek Beach, near Point Mugu State Park.
The agents did not find anyone on the boat or in the surrounding area, according to the release.
But what they did find was several large bundles of marijuana nearby and more than 500 gallons of fuel on board the boat. In total, the agents recovered more than 60 pounds of marijuana with an estimated street value of $24,000. The marijuana and the boat were both seized by the agents.
Agents determined that the boat, capable of carrying up to 5,000 pounds of narcotics traveling at a high rate of speed, had a broken steering cable that they believed forced the smugglers to abandon the vessel.
According to CBP, agents have seized 925 pounds of marijuana, 26 vessels and made more than 280 arrests from maritime smuggling events in the San Diego sector since Oct. 1 of last year.
CBP asked that anyone with information about maritime smuggling or suspicious activity along the coast of California call local police.
