A boat loaded with bundles of marijuana -- possibly more than one ton -- washed ashore Monday morning on the Southern California coast.
The 30-foot boat, an open fishing boat with outboard power, was discovered near the Ventura and Los Angeles county line near Leo Carrillo State Park, about 10 miles west of Malibu. Authorities could not confirm the weight of the cargo, but estimated it weighed about one ton after viewing the boat.
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One person was detained at the beach. A helicopter crew did not locate anyone in the water, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
The boat was found at about 8 a.m.
The boat is the latest drug-smuggling vessel found along the shoreline northwest of Los Angeles. In September, more than 2,000 pounds of marijuana were seized and 18 people were arrested after members of the California National Guard spotted a panga boat near Arroyo Quernada Beach in Santa Barbara County. Authorities later stopped a truck that was involved in the smuggling scheme.
An estimated $4 million worth of marijuana wrapped in bundles washed ashore near Santa Barbara in March 2013. A 30-foot panga boat with about 20 fuel containers was found nearby.
In December 2012, a U.S. Coast Guardsman was killed when he was thrown from a boat that was rammed by a panga boat under investigation for smuggling off the Southern California coast. Drugs onboard the panga were seized and two smuggling suspects were taken into custody.
The U.S. Coast Guard seized 81,000 pounds of marijuana last year, down from 124,500 in 2012.
