John McCarthy
CHARLOTTE AMALIE — Two Central Americans and one South American pleaded guilty smuggling 844 pounds of cocaine in United States territorial waters.
Eleuterio Gomez Murillo, 53, of Colombia, and Randall Vasquez, 47, and Mainor Salazar Montero, 34, both of Costa Rica, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute cocaine onboard a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, U.S. Attorney Delia L. Smith said.
According to court documents, on November 26, 2020, the United States Coast Guard intercepted a vessel in international waters approximately 115 nautical miles from Isla Malpelo, Colombia.
On board the vessel were the three defendants, multiple cannisters of fuel and 383 kilograms of cocaine. For their convictions, Murillo, Vasquez and Salazar Montero face a sentence of up to 20 years of imprisonment.
The case was investigated by the United States Coast Guard and the U.S. Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA). It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Everard E. Potter.
