SAN DIEGO- Senior Chief Petty Officer Steven Sheffield, a native of Hampton, Virginia, recently participated in seizing more than 1,500 kilograms of cocaine while operating in the Pacific Ocean April 7.
According to a Navy news release, “USS Freedom, with embarked U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment 107, conducted the seizure off the coast of Mexico in support of Joint Interagency Task Force South’s counter-illicit drug trafficking mission.”
After the illicit drug transport boat was identified by Freedom and Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 23, the U.S. Coast Guard conducted the boarding, search and seizure.
“I have spent nearly 20 years of service across two branches of the Armed Forces and this deployment was the most rewarding experience of my entire career” said Sheffield.
“The Navy-Coast Guard team on Freedom executed flawlessly,” said Vice Adm. Scott D. Conn, U.S. Third Fleet commander. “This mission, performed on short notice with exacting precision, demonstrates the strength of our flexible, mobile, integrated and trained team.”
U.S. 3rd Fleet leads naval forces in the Indo-Pacific and provides the realistic, relevant training necessary to flawlessly execute our Navy’s timeless roles of sea control and power projection. U.S. 3rd Fleet works in close coordination with other numbered Fleets to provide commanders with capable, ready assets to
deploy forward and win in day-to-day competition, in crisis, and in conflict.