KEY WEST, Fla. — Law enforcement recovered several bricks of drugs from a man who said he pulled them in about 50 miles offshore from the Florida Keys, according to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office.
Deputies responded Saturday afternoon to the Coconut Mallory Resort and Marina on South Roosevelt Boulevard, where Key West police were on the scene with the man and 25 rectangle-shaped bricks, a statement reads.
Authorities say the man found the bale in the middle of the ocean. They appeared wrapped in green plastic with black XXX decals on each. In total, the bundle weighed about 55 pounds, the sheriff's office said.
It's unclear what kind of drug was contained inside the packages.
"The bricks were turned over to the Sheriff’s Office Property and Evidence Division and will be turned over to federal authorities," the agency said in a statement.
It's not an uncommon occurrence for narcotics to be plucked from the water or washed ashore across the Florida Keys. In December 2021, someone spotted more than $1 million worth of cocaine floating at sea, according to the U.S. Border Patrol. Another 126 pounds of cocaine were recovered earlier this month.