The crew of a Royal Netherlands Navy (RNN) patrol ship successfully interdicted a shipment of narcotics totalling 511 kg in Caribbean waters late last month, the Dutch Ministry of Defence (MOD) confirmed via a press release on Monday, December 9.
The successful seizure operation began when a maritime patrol plane of the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard detected a suspicious vessel within its area of responsibility on November 24. The offshore patrol vessel HNLMS Holland then diverted to the area and deployed some of its fast interceptor boats with embarked boarding teams consisting of Dutch Royal Marines and US Coast Guard (USCG) maritime law enforcement personnel..
The MOD said the joint RNN-USCG boarding party opened fire on the suspect vessel, targeting its engines to prevent escape. Four people on the suspect vessel then threw some packages overboard, and these were later picked up by the responding RNN and USCG personnel and brought aboard Holland.
The packages were found to contain 511 kg of cocaine. The narcotics and the four occupants of the suspect vessel were taken into custody and are to be prosecuted in the United States.
The MOD said this is Holland's seventh successful narcotics seizure operation since arriving in the Caribbean in early September 2024.