469,000 Pounds of Cocaine Seized by US Coast Guard, DHS Reveals in Year-End Total

Coast Guard’s Operation Pacific Viper is a crucial weapon in the fight against foreign drug traffickers, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said.

The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) has seized more than 469,000 pounds of cocaine under the Trump administration since Jan. 20, 2025, which is enough to kill up to 177 million Americans at a lethal dose of 1.2 grams, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a Dec. 31 post on X.

Multiple operations against drug trafficking have been launched by the USCG under the Trump administration. In early October, the Coast Guard launched Operation River Wall to secure and defend the roughly 260 miles of the Rio Grande River making up parts of the Southern border, aiming to “defeat illegal immigration, drug smuggling, and other threats to our communities,” USCG said in an Oct. 20 statement.

In August, the Coast Guard launched Operation Pacific Viper, which surges forces to the Eastern Pacific region with the aim of stopping criminal organizations and cartels, cutting off their human and drug smuggling efforts before these reach U.S. shores.

In a Dec. 9 statement, USCG said it had seized more than 150,000 pounds of cocaine through the operation, enough to create 57 million potentially lethal doses.

“Operation Pacific Viper has proven to be a crucial weapon in the fight against foreign drug traffickers and cartels in Latin America and has sent a clear message that we will disrupt, dismantle, and destroy their deadly business exploits wherever we find them,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said at the time.

“In cutting off the flow of these deadly drugs, the Coast Guard is saving countless American lives and delivering on President Trump’s promise to Make America Safe Again and reestablish our maritime dominance.”

According to the DHS, 80 percent of all narcotics bound for the United States are transported via the sea, highlighting the importance of maritime drug interdiction.

In its latest X post, DHS said that during Operation Pacific Viper, USCGC Stone, the biggest and most technologically advanced ship in the Coast Guard, offloaded roughly 49,010 pounds of illicit narcotics at Port Everglades, Florida, valued at more than $362 million.

This was the “largest amount of cocaine” seized by a single cutter vessel in one patrol in the history of the USCG, according to the department.

CBP Drug Seizures

DHS noted the drug seizure achievements of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in its X post.

“For too long, America has been targeted by unfair trade practices that made our supply chain dependent on foreign adversaries, eroded our industrial base, and hurt American workers. This year, @CBP assessed over $190.7 billion in tariff revenue and $266.7 billion in total customs revenue,” the department said.

CBP seized 539,984 pounds of drugs—a nearly 10 percent increase from the same time frame in 2024.

One of the most recent seizures by the CBP took place on Dec. 24, when authorities took over roughly 935-pound bricks of cocaine that were hidden inside a flatbed cargo trailer chassis coming in from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, the agency said in a Dec. 30 statement.

Officers were inspecting the inbound cargo at the Port of San Juan when they noticed irregularities in a flatbed cargo platform chassis. This led to further inspection, with authorities finding a white powdery substance later revealed to be cocaine, according to CBP.

“Our officers remain vigilant and dedicated to protecting our borders, even during the holiday season,” San Juan Area Port Director Kian Tomas said.

“This seizure highlights the commitment and professionalism of our team in preventing dangerous drugs from reaching our communities.”

Drug Boat Strikes

The United States has been targeting drug boats in the Pacific and Caribbean over recent months. The death toll from strikes against narcotics traffickers is at least 110 since September.

On Dec. 4, Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), the leading Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, told reporters following a classified briefing that what he witnessed during a video showcased in the event “was one of the most troubling things” he has seen while in public service.

“You have two individuals in clear distress without any means of locomotion, with a destroyed vessel, [that] were killed by the United States,” Himes said.

Meanwhile, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) defended the strikes.

“Jim may disagree with the entire operation,” he said. “He may be OK with drug boats running to America, or at least thinking that it’s an effective tactic to interdict them. I just disagree with that.”