Costa Rica makes first large marijuana seizure of 2015

Related: Costa Rica’s 3-pronged strategy scores high against drug trafficking, says Coast Guard chief

There’s one metric ton less of Jamaican “high red” marijuana destined for Costa Rica after authorities seized a boatload of the drug off the Caribbean coast of Limón on Sunday, according to a statement from the Public Security Ministry.

The joint operation between the U.S. and Costa Rican coast guards and Colombian authorities resulted in the interception of a suspicious vessel in the Caribbean spotted by a U.S. P3 surveillance plane 20 miles off the coast of Limón. The Coast Guard fished at least 38 bags of marijuana out of the sea after the five-member crew started throwing their illicit cargo overboard.

Public Security Minister Celso Gamboa called the seizure the first important marijuana seizure of 2015. Gamboa added that the drugs were destined for consumption in Costa Rica.

The suspects include three Jamaicans with the last names Reynold, Duman and Curryi; a Nicaraguan identified as Lacayo; and a Costa Rican named Patterson.

On Monday, police discovered 1,284 marijuana plants guarded by a 17-year-old boy toting a .22-caliber rifle outside Salitre, Puntarenas, in the southern part of the country, according to a separate statement from the ministry.

Costa Rica seized more than 7 metric tons of marijuana in 2014.