Border Patrol agents seize 800 pounds of cocaine off Puerto Rico coast

Roughly $7.5m of drugs seized

(US Customs and Border Patrol)

Border Patrol agents seized nearly 800 pounds of cocaine off the coast of Puerto Rico this week, according to the agency.

Customs agent intercepted the stash on Wednesday, seizing 794 pounds of drugs worth nearly $7.5m.

"AMO agents continue to use their awareness of our maritime context to detect and intercept contraband being smuggled into our coastal borders," Augusto Reyes, Director of the Caribbean Air and Marine Branch, said in a statement.

Agents found a suspicious boat of the coast of western Puerto Rico and escorted it back to Mayaguez.

Once on land, Puerto Rico police used a K-9 unit to search the craft, finding the cocaine.

Three men were arrested in connection with the search.

US Customs and Border Patrol has roughly 1,800 federals agents, 240 air craft, and 300 marine vessels that patrol Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, and other coastal waterways.