KINGSTOWN, St Vincent and the Grenadines — A US drone strike near Bequia on Feb. 13 was followed by cocaine bales washing ashore in St Vincent and the Grenadines, with officials estimating the value of recovered drugs at more than US$500 million. National Security Minister St Clair Leacock said the incident occurred inside the country’s exclusive economic zone and has created unintended onshore fallout for authorities and communities.
Leacock said cocaine appearing along shorelines typically brings serious public-safety risks, including attempts to retrieve the drugs and disputes that can spill into violence. He said arrests have already been made, including cases involving residents from his own constituency.
U.S. Southern Command confirmed a “lethal kinetic strike” on Feb. 13 on a vessel it said was operating along known narco-trafficking routes and engaged in narcotics trafficking. The U.S. statement said three people were killed and no U.S. forces were harmed, as outlined in earlier coverage.
Arrests and heightened policing after US drone strike near Bequia
Leacock said law enforcement has increased its activity as cocaine recoveries continue, with authorities working to prevent the drugs from being redistributed. He warned that sudden inflows of narcotics can trigger spikes in violence as multiple actors compete to recover or profit from contraband that enters public spaces.
Officials have not released a consolidated national count of bales recovered from shorelines, and no official total weight has been publicly issued for all seizures linked to the wash-ups. Leacock said the estimated value of drugs recovered so far exceeds US$500 million, which he described as close to half a billion U.S. dollars.
For coastal communities, the episode has created immediate practical concerns, including public safety and the risk of confrontation when bales appear in accessible areas. Authorities have urged residents to cooperate with police as investigations continue and recovered drugs are processed as evidence.
Government seeks fuller US accounting of the Feb. 13 strike
Leacock said the government views the situation as an incident it did not initiate, and he expressed disappointment that officials have not yet received a full report from the United States on the Feb. 13 operation. He said local agencies are managing the domestic consequences while seeking clearer information about what occurred at sea.
Prime Minister Dr. Godwin Friday has described the matter as concerning and said his administration is pursuing verified details through national security leadership and the police. The government has signaled it wants more clarity as it assesses how the offshore incident connects to the large-scale drug recoveries now being handled on land.
U.S. Southern Command’s statement confirmed the strike and described the targeted vessel as tied to narcotics trafficking, but it did not address requests by Vincentian officials for a fuller local accounting. Leacock said authorities remain focused on maintaining order, pursuing arrests where evidence supports charges, and limiting the broader harm that can follow when large quantities of drugs enter local circulation.
The developments were first reported by St Vincent Times
