3 Dominican Nationals Arrested With 174 Pounds Of Cocaine Near Dorado Beach

SAN JUAN — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Puerto Rico Police Department arrested three illegal aliens from the Dominican Republic and seized 174.07 pounds (78.96 Kilos) of cocaine after making landfall near a beach in Dorado.

A concerned citizen contacted CBP Public Affairs with information on suspicious activity in a Dorado Beach on Tuesday morning. 

The information was immediately relayed to the Caribbean Air and Marine Operations Center (CAMOC) and the Ramey Sector Communications for detection and response.

Ramey U.S. Border Patrol Agents, Air and Marine Operations (AMO) Agents and the Puerto Rico Police Department responded to Dorado, Puerto Rico near a popular venue called El Caracol.

Border Patrol Agents confirmed the smuggling event took place and discovered 22-foot yola-type homemade vessel with two outboard engines beached on shore.

After an extensive search of the area, three illegal aliens from the Dominican Republic (all adult males) were arrested, and four bales containing bricks, which field-tested positive to the properties of cocaine.

U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) took custody of the three aliens and the contraband for investigation and prosecution.

John F. McCarthy is a veteran journalist in the Caribbean, writing from the "Decision Space" where survival meets the surreal. His reporting steel was tempered by a lineage of legendary editors and broadcasters, including Ed Wynn Brant (The Bomb), Owen Eschenroder (Ann Arbor News), Lynelle Emanuel (BVI Beacon), and Charles Thanas (WSVI-TV). Alongside longtime colleague Kenneth C. "Casey" Clark, McCarthy has navigated the front lines of the territory’s history—from the 1997 volcanic "snow" to every major hurricane since Hugo. Known for leaning out of doorless helicopters to capture the "money shot," McCarthy now edits the V.I. Free Press, providing the essential link between the island's colonial past and its SpaceX future.