500 Pounds of Cocaine Found on Oil Tanker

Federal agents arrested Guillermo Meza, 32, after finding 227 kilograms (500 pounds) of cocaine concealed inside a fuel tank of the Panamanian-flagged oil tanker Cosco Hellas, anchored 25 miles off the Port of Los Angeles on May 20, 2026. The U.S. Coast Guard and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) boarded the vessel during a routine inspection prompted by suspicious activity, according to a Department of Justice release. Meza, a Mexican national and crew member, was taken into custody without incident . ### Who is Guillermo Meza? Guillermo Meza worked as an oiler aboard the Cosco Hellas, which had arrived from Ecuador earlier that week, court documents show. Prosecutors allege Meza hid the cocaine bricks—vacuum-sealed and coated in grease—in a sounding tube connected to one of the ship's fuel tanks, a method designed to evade detection during standard cargo checks. HSI agents recovered the drugs after a K-9 unit alerted on the tank during the May 20 boarding . Meza faces one count of possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine on a vessel, carrying a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison if convicted, the DOJ said. He made his initial court appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Autumn D. Spaeth on May 22 and remains in federal custody. ### Where did the cocaine come from and where was it headed? The shipment originated in Guayaquil, Ecuador, loaded onto the Cosco Hellas under the guise of legitimate fuel additives, according to an affidavit from HSI Special Agent Michael Johnson. Prosecutors say GPS data and communications intercepted from Meza's phone link the drugs to the Sinaloa Cartel, Mexico's largest trafficking organization, which reportedly arranged offloading at a remote beach near Ensenada, Baja California . Ecuador has emerged as a key transshipment point for cocaine produced in Colombia, with authorities there seizing over 200 metric tons in 2025 alone, per United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime data. The Cosco Hellas, operated by Chinese shipping giant COSCO, had stopped in Guayaquil on May 15 before sailing north. ### How was the cocaine hidden on the tanker? Agents found the cocaine packed into two black duffel bags submerged in diesel fuel within the sounding tube, a narrow pipe used to measure tank levels, the affidavit states. Each brick weighed about 1 kilogram, stamped with logos associated with Sinaloa Cartel labs. Divers recovered the bags after draining the tube, yielding 227.3 kilograms with 98% purity, lab tests confirmed by the DEA on May 21 . This "fuel tank drop" technique exploits the hazards of inspecting petroleum vessels, where crews and inspectors avoid opening live tanks due to explosion risks, said HSI Los Angeles Acting Special Agent in Charge Chris Ragan in a statement. Maritime smugglers favor tankers because they carry massive legitimate cargoes— the Cosco Hellas held 300,000 barrels of crude—making anomalies hard to spot. ### What is the street value and bigger trafficking picture? The seized cocaine has an estimated wholesale value of $12.7 million, enough for 6.4 million street doses, according to DEA calculations released May 23. Off the streets of Los Angeles, it could fetch up to $50 million at retail prices of $80-100 per gram. Southern California ports handle 40% of U.S. imports, with the San Pedro Bay complex (Los Angeles and Long Beach) seeing 9 million cargo containers annually, Customs and Border Protection data shows. Maritime seizures hit 28 metric tons of cocaine nationwide in fiscal 2025, up 15% from prior year, but officials estimate they intercept only 10-20% of attempts, per a Government Accountability Office report . "This bust highlights the persistent threat to our ports from sophisticated narco-smugglers," U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said in the DOJ release. Prosecutors credit a tip from Ecuadorian authorities tracking the Cosco Hellas. ### Who owns the tanker and what happens to the ship? COSCO Shipping Tanker Co., a subsidiary of state-owned China COSCO Shipping Corp., owns and operates the Cosco Hellas, built in 2005 with a deadweight tonnage of 110,000 metric tons, according to maritime database Equasis. The vessel was cleared to resume operations after the seizure and sailed to Long Beach for unloading on May 22. No charges against the company or other crew members have been announced. COSCO has faced prior U.S. sanctions for alleged Iranian oil shipments but no direct links to this case, per Treasury Department records. ### What charges does Meza face and when is his next court date? Meza is charged under the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act (46 U.S.C. § 70503), which applies to U.S. waters regardless of nationality. A federal grand jury in Los Angeles indicted him on May 23. His arraignment is set for May 29 before U.S. District Judge David O. Carter, with a preliminary hearing targeted for June 12, court records show . If convicted, Meza faces 10 years to life in prison, plus five years supervised release and a $10 million fine. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California will prosecute, assisted by HSI and CBP. ```