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June 15, 2020Philadelphia, PA, United StatesNarcotics

Shipping vessel crew member pleads guilty to drug trafficking

PHILADELPHIA — On June 15, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Philadelphia and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced that a 27-year old of Montenegro man, entered a plea of guilty in United States District Court on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine on a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, following an investigation by HSI and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), with a multi-agency team of federal, state, and local partners.

In 2019, Vladimir Penda, a crew member who worked on board the shipping vessel MSC Gayane as the ship’s fourth engineer, conspired with others to engage in bulk cocaine smuggling. On multiple occasions during the MSC Gayane’s voyage at sea, crew members, including Penda, helped load bulk cocaine onto the vessel from speedboats that approached under cover of darkness, traveling at high speeds. Crew members used the Gayane’s crane to hoist cargo nets full of cocaine onto the vessel and then stashed the drugs in various shipping containers.

“Mr. Penda’s guilty plea is a testament to HSI’s commitment to holding all those involved in the transnational drug smuggling investigation aboard the MSC Gayane accountable,” said Brian A. Michael, Special Agent in Charge for HSI Philadelphia. “HSI, in collaboration with CBP, the Coast Guard, and our other federal, state and local law enforcement partners, are committed to the detection and disruption of transnational drug smuggling, and will continue to work in concert with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania to keep our communities safe.”

“Federal agents found nearly 20 tons of cocaine hidden on this ship when it arrived in the port of Philadelphia in June 2019,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain. “Over the past year, prosecutors in my office, in conjunction with our partner agencies, have been working non-stop to pursue justice in this case in order to protect our district and our country. We want to send a strong message to criminals around the world that Philadelphia is not a safe harbor for their deadly drug trafficking.”

On June 17, 2019, federal, state, and local law enforcement agents boarded the MSC Gayane when it arrived at Packer Marine Terminal in Philadelphia and seized approximately 20 tons of cocaine on the ship, with a street value of over $1 billion. This was one of the largest drug seizures in U.S. history.

The defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of lifetime imprisonment.

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