Evidence of smuggled cocaine in Dior packaging. Photo Credit: U.S. Attorney of Los Angeles
Federal agents intercept international smuggling plot, diverting a cartel-targeted vessel to the Port of Los Angeles.
Federal agents arrested a Filipino mariner Thursday after intercepting a Greek-owned oil tanker inbound from Ecuador, disrupting an international maritime smuggling plot to deliver 500 pounds of cocaine to a Mexican drug cartel, the office of the U.S. Attorney of Los Angeles announced.
Ceasar Tubay Gelacio, Jr., 43, of the Philippines, faces a federal criminal charge of importation of a controlled substance. He was scheduled to make his initial appearance on Friday afternoon in the U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles.
According to an affidavit supporting the criminal complaint, federal law enforcement received intelligence earlier this month that the Liberian-flagged vessel, Aquatravesia, was traveling toward El Segundo, California, with a massive narcotics shipment. Crew members subsequently discovered multiple bricks of suspected cocaine hidden inside the ship’s garbage room. Following an internal inquiry by the ship’s captain, Gelacio was identified as the individual possessing the contraband, which the captain then secured in a separate compartment.
The captain told investigators he was warned that armed Mexican cartel members in small naval vessels would be waiting 80 nautical miles offshore on the night of May 14 to intercept the ship. Cartel operatives allegedly threatened to board the oil tanker by force if the narcotics were not offloaded. Before reaching U.S. waters, the captain reported receiving suspicious radio transmissions attempting to hail the vessel.
U.S. law enforcement intercepted the situation, directing the Aquatravesia to divert to the Port of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Federal authorities boarded the anchored tanker Thursday, seizing approximately 227 kilograms (500 pounds) of cocaine. Investigators determined Gelacio had acquired the narcotics in Ecuador with the intent to drop them off to cartel traffickers while transiting past the Mexican coast.
If convicted, Gelacio faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a maximum statutory penalty of life imprisonment.
The ongoing maritime investigation is being spearheaded by Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Coast Guard, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Monika L. Hara prosecuting the case. A criminal complaint contains allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
