Ounce of Pot Prompts Seizure of 55-Foot Boat

The Coast Guard seized a 55-foot fishing boat off San Diego Wednesday after finding less than an ounce of marijuana and a small amount of what appeared to be methamphetamine on the vessel.

The boat, called the Maria Elena, was in international waters 75 miles west of San Diego when Coast Guard personnel boarded it about 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, according to Charles Embleton, a Coast Guard spokesman in Los Angeles.

The seizure is part of a six-week-old drug crackdown program called “zero tolerance,” under which the Coast Guard seizes boats on which even minuscule amounts of illegal drugs are found.

“The Coast Guard is saying that if you value your boat, make sure no one brings drugs on board,” Embleton said. “Under federal law, possession of any amount of illegal drugs is a crime. If it’s two seeds, it’s a crime.” Last Saturday, Coast Guard officials in Miami seized a 133-foot yacht valued at $2.5 million after finding one-tenth of an ounce of marijuana on board.

The Maria Elena is the first boat to be seized off the coast of California, according to John Miller, a spokesman for the U.S. Customs Service in Los Angeles. Several boats have been seized off the coasts of Alaska and Hawaii in the past several weeks, he said.

Little Information

Coast Guard officials said little information was available Wednesday about the Maria Elena because radio transmissions had been sketchy and the boat and its Coast Guard escort were not expected to arrive in San Diego until Thursday morning.

Three crew members were aboard the Maria Elena when it was boarded by Coast Guard personnel who were stationed on a Navy ship, Embleton said. Officials would not say why they decided to board the Maria Elena or where the marijuana or suspected methamphetamine were found.

No arrests were made, but crew members could face charges for possession and attempted importation of illegal drugs, Embleton said.

The identity of the boat’s owner was not immediately available, Embleton said. Coast Guard records indicate that there are several vessels called Maria Elena in California and the license number was not available.

The boat that was seized is home-ported in Moss Landing, but apparently had been operating out of San Diego, officials said.

The boat will be turned over to the U.S. Customs service, which is expected to begin a formal forfeiture procedure, Embleton said.

The Ark Royal, the $2.5-million yacht seized last Saturday, was released Tuesday after payment of $1,600 in fines and fees.

Nancy Worthington, chief assistant U.S. attorney in San Diego, said Wednesday that the crackdown on boats is an extension of a pilot program operating at the California-Mexico border.

For the last year, Customs and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Diego have been pursuing a “zero-tolerance” program under which more than 1,000 people have been charged with drug violations for transporting drugs into the United States in amounts that in some instances were barely measurable. Frequently, their cars or trucks are seized, but the owners generally are able to recover them unless the charges involve substantial amounts of drugs.