NEW YORK: US customs authorities announced the seizure of a ton of cocaine in a fast boat off the coast of Panama and another 800 pounds (360 kilos) of the drug on a cargo ship in Miami, Florida.
They said the fast boat was spotted March 19 by a US Customs and Border Patrol aircraft which alerted Panamanian authorities that intercepted the craft.
The cocaine recovered in the action was valued at $164 million.
The other big drug bust occurred on February 27, when US authorities discovered $9 million worth of cocaine in the hold of a cargo ship in the Miami River.
The drugs, divided into 310 packets, were hidden inside a concrete-sealed compartment aboard the 180-foot (55-meter) vessel.