Tampa mayor Jane Castor was fishing for lobster and mahi-mahi with her family in the Florida Keys when she hauled in an unexpected catch: a microwave-sized bag packed with 70 pounds of cocaine worth $US1.1 million ($A1.7 million).
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Castor's family was headed back to port when her brother spotted some debris, the mayor told Tampa TV station WFLA-TV. They edged closer for better fishing, she said, since smaller fish tend to congregate beneath debris for shade.
"The closer we got, I realised that it was a bale of cocaine," Castor told WFLA-TV.
And she would know. Having been a narcotics officer for eight years in the Tampa Police Department, and the chief for six, she has seen it all.
The package was wrapped in fraying plastic and proved to contain about two dozen tightly wrapped bricks, tastefully adorned with blue and purple butterflies. After dragging it onboard their boat, Castor notified the Monroe County Sheriff's Office. US Border Patrol agents soon swooped in and collected the stash, confirming the contents and the value.
"Over the weekend, Border Patrol agents in the Miami Sector seized 70 pounds of cocaine that was discovered by a recreational boater in the Florida Keys," Chief Patrol Agent Walter N. Slosar said on social media.
"The drugs have an estimated street value of approximately $US1.1 million."
Castor has been taking this summer fishing trip for nearly a decade, she told the Tampa Bay Times newspaper. Her usual haul is mahi-mahi and spiny lobster.
Australian Associated Press
