In less than a week, a U.S. Coast Guard crew seized more than 25,000 pounds of cocaine across three interdictions in the eastern Pacific Ocean, according to a report by The Center Square. The actions were attributed to Operation Pacific Viper, an international maritime drug-trafficking interdiction effort launched in August 2025.
Since the operation began, Coast Guard crews have seized more than 260,000 pounds of cocaine, The Center Square reported, citing the Coast Guard. “We own the sea, and Operation Pacific Viper is proving that every day,” Admiral Kevin Lunday, commandant of the Coast Guard, said in a statement quoted by the outlet. He added that Coast Guard crews are “denying [narco-terrorists] the routes they rely on to move drugs, money and violence, while protecting the homeland and disrupting transnational criminal organizations far from U.S. shores.”
Three fast hits in the eastern Pacific
On Sept. 11, a maritime patrol aircraft identified a go-fast vessel south of Costa Rica, The Center Square reported. The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Tampa launched a cutter boat and embarked helicopter, which employed warning shots before law enforcement personnel boarded the vessel. The crew seized more than 6,800 pounds of cocaine, embarked three suspected smugglers, and sank the vessel as a hazard to navigation, according to the report.
On Sept. 15, The Center Square says Tampa’s crew interdicted two suspected drug-smuggling vessels south of Panama, seizing more than 15,000 pounds of cocaine and embarking six suspected smugglers.
The next day, the crew interdicted another vessel south of Panama, seizing 3,456 pounds of cocaine, the outlet reported. Combined, the three actions netted more than 25,256 pounds of cocaine.
What Operation Pacific Viper is—and where it runs
The Center Square reports Operation Pacific Viper was launched as part of the Trump administration’s border security efforts, expanding Coast Guard interdictions to counter cartel operations at sea. The eastern Pacific is described as a primary corridor for narcotics smuggling from Central and South America.
According to the report, U.S. Southern Command’s Joint Interagency Task Force–South (Key West, Florida) directs the effort, with interdictions performed under the authority and control of the Coast Guard’s Southwest District (headquartered in Alameda, California). The Coast Guard is part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
By the numbers: 262,000+ lbs seized since launch, report says
Since August 2025, Operation Pacific Viper crews have seized approximately 119,165 kilograms—more than 262,000 pounds—of cocaine in the eastern Pacific, according to The Center Square, citing Coast Guard figures.
How dangerous is that haul?
The Department of Homeland Security estimates a lethal dose of cocaine at 1.2 grams, The Center Square reported. Using that metric, the three interdictions’ 25,256 pounds would equal an estimated 9.5 million lethal doses, and the post–August 2025 total would equal 99 million. The Center Square also references a separate 30-milligram “lethal dose” metric it has used previously; by that calculation, the cumulative seizure could equal 3.9 billion doses. Toxicity estimates vary and are not medical conclusions.
Beyond the Coast Guard: CBP and Border Patrol seizures
The Center Square reported that drug seizures are up overall under the Trump administration as more Border Patrol agents and Coast Guard crews are in the field. In California, Border Patrol agents seized 2,270 pounds of cocaine in one bust, which the outlet said could represent 34 million lethal doses using a 30-milligram metric.
According to The Center Square, in the first seven months of the fiscal year, which began last Oct. 1, Customs and Border Protection agents working out of 54 ports of entry in California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas seized more than 100 million lethal doses of fentanyl. Nationwide through August, CBP agents at ports of entry and Border Patrol agents between ports of entry seized 73% more drugs than in the same period of fiscal 2024, the outlet reported. CBP said this year’s drug seizures are 61% higher than the last four years’ average.
The Center Square added that cocaine seizures increased 28%, with 6,724 pounds seized “last month,” and fentanyl seizures remained high at 773 pounds in August. Working with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, CBP also helped seize more than 120,000 pounds of precursor chemicals last month, the outlet reported.
