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A large tempest has yet to deed Florida this hurricane play but that hasn't stopped the yearly deluge of drugs from making landfall.
A beachgoer connected Sunday greeting stumbled crossed astir $500,000 worthy of cocaine wrapped successful "Yosemite Sam" packaging washed up connected a Florida beach, authorities said, marking yet different find of illicit drugs on shores successful the Sunshine State.
The 25 kilos of drugs were wrapped successful packaging with a plan of the iconic cartoon character, the Walton County Sheriff's Office said successful a social media post, which included images of the cocaine.
A beachgoer recovered astir $500,000 worthy of cocaine wrapped successful "Yosemite Sam" packaging successful the Florida Keys, authorities said.
Walton County Sheriff's Office
"While enjoying our beauteous beaches, if you travel crossed immoderate quadrate groupers, PLEASE telephone the Walton County Sheriff's Office instantly and DO NOT interaction suspicious packages," the bureau said. "The contents could beryllium highly harmful. We're present if you request us."
Authorities said they confiscated the narcotics and logged them into evidence.
It's hardly the archetypal clip amerciable narcotics person washed up connected beaches successful Florida — and often the drugs are packaged with chiseled designs.
In August 2024, Hurricane Debby blew 25 packages of cocaine onto different Florida Keys beach. The packages, bearing a reddish geometric logo, weighed astir 70 pounds and were worthy implicit $1 million, constabulary said astatine the time.
That aforesaid month, tourists found a package with 16 bricks of suspected cocaine successful Florida.
In June 2024, boaters disconnected the seashore of the Florida Keys found 65 pounds of cocaine floating successful the ocean. A photograph released by the sheriff's bureau showed a bundle of the suspected cocaine emblazoned with an representation of a bald eagle.
Just weeks after divers found about 55 pounds of cocaine astir 100 feet underwater disconnected Key West. Images released by the sheriff's bureau showed packages marked "Nike SB," with imitations of the footwear brand's iconic swoosh logo connected the front.
Researchers with the U.N. have estimated that astir 90% of the cocaine consumed successful North America comes from Colombia. Traffickers often effort to smuggle the illicit substance implicit the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean with velocity boats and "narco subs." Cocaine tin beryllium dumped into the h2o to evade detection from instrumentality enforcement oregon to beryllium picked up by different smugglers, but currents oregon storms tin transportation the packages to shore.
Stephen Smith is simply a managing exertion for CBSNews.com based successful New York. A Washington, D.C. native, Steve was antecedently an editorial shaper for the Washington Post, and has besides worked successful Los Angeles, Boston and Tokyo.
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