On Monday, police arrested a Mississippi man after he attempted to pocket more than one of the 15 bricks of cocaine that washed ashore over the weekend.
Last week, parcels started to appear around the city on Saturday, so police charged Joey Lee Ware, 37, with aggravated trafficking of controlled substances after he was found with a brick and a half of coke plastered with a Dior label on it.
Authorities were notified of the strange discovery after eight bricks were discovered as volunteers for the Keesler Air Force Base cleaned up along the beach. As they searched the area further, they found three other packages down the shore.
The drugs, which are worth $1 million, will be disposed of.
The Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, DEA, Customs Border Patrol, Homeland Security Investigations, and the City of Biloxi Police Department have all been requested to work together on the investigation.
“One-and-a-half was actually discovered by a citizen, and this is the important part. If you discover it, you should call us,” Biloxi Police Capt. Thomas Goldsworthy said. “He instead decided to do other things with it, and he was arrested and charged with aggravated trafficking.”
Residents are urged not to follow Ware’s example and to contact the authorities instead if they come across any bricks. Officers will keep searching for any additional bricks that wash ashore.
