Police in the Marshall Island has discovered their largest drug haul ever after a resident of the Ailuk atoll reported finding an abandoned 5.5 meter-long (18 feet-long) boat that washed ashore. Residents of the atoll initially tried to move the boat, and while investigating the vessel, they discovered a hidden compartment inside the boat with packets of cocaine. In total, 649 kilograms (1,430 pounds) of cocaine with an estimated street value of over 80 million United States dollars was discovered and incinerated. Two packets of cocaine were sent to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration for testing.

It is not uncommon for drugs to wash ashore onto the remove archipelago nation, as the currents of the Pacific Ocean often pushes debris from thousands of kilometers away to the Marshall Islands. Attorney General Richard Hickson says that he believes the boat could have drifted for over a year, and likely originated in Central or South America. Mr. Hickson also praised locals for notifying authorities of the drugs rather than selling it. Authorities of the atoll says that the sale of drugs that washes ashore has fueled a local drug problem that resulted in a rise in patients with complications of using various drugs.

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