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Seven MSC crew arrested in drugs bust
Seven crew members from MSC Seaside have been arrested for allegedly smuggling cocaine into Miami.
Customs and Border Protection discovered a total of 17 pounds of cocaine during a sweep of the ship on November 17, according to court documents.
Damion Hawthorne, 32, was arrested for recruiting South African crew members Londiwe Shange, Wandile Mhlongo, Thembeka Sokhulu, and Viwe Tshaka, who allegedly picked up the drugs stash in Jamaica while the ship was docked.
CBP officers allegedly found 2.2 pounds of cocaine in the backpacks of Errol Roy Sutherland and Carl Michael Smith.
Around $100,000 was also seized.
The employees had been earning about $2,000 for each drug run over the past few months, alleged federal prosecutors.
All are being held on a $250,000 bond and are due to be arraigned in a Miami federal court on December 3.
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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