Half-ton of marijuana left near Pescadero State Beach
SAN MATEO COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- More than 1,000 pounds of marijuana was found on a Bay Area beach Monday morning.
Sheriff's deputies recovered the pot on an abandoned boat at Pescadero State Beach in San Mateo County.
"We believe that the vessel landed here under the cover of darkness and there was a pickup crew waiting to take the narcotics from the vessel onto their vehicle," said Lee Brown with the Department of Homeland Security.
The smugglers loaded an SUV with 42 bales of marijuana.
"It appears that the vehicle was a little too heavy and couldn't make it out of the sand," said Brown.
The smugglers abandoned ship, their vehicle and ran off; leaving their precious cargo before San Mateo County deputies and federal agents arrived.
Investigators believe there was no mother ship off the coast that loaded the pot onto the 30-foot Pango boat.
The huge gas tank and the twin outboard motors indicated the boat probably weaved its way along the coast all the way from Mexico. The name plate on the side indicated the boat came from the Mexican state of Sinaloa.
This is the eighth confirmed landing of a boat carrying narcotics from the Monterrey, Mexico coast to San Mateo County's beaches since March of last year.
They believe the pressure of increased interdiction in Southern California is driving the smugglers farther north.
