December – From Stuart Island to Bellingham Bay
© Copyright by John B. Gargett 2008/2009 All Rights Reserved
Ryan, Jason and Derek just rounded the north end of Satellite Island and were heading into Johns Pass en route to deliver 200 Kilo’s of BC Bud by dropping waterproof bales from the back of M/V Slocum that they were “performing sea trials” on for the boats owner, William Hansen. The M/V Slocum was a 2006 49’ Meridian Pilot House. William knew they were out in the boat, the boys always notified the owner just in case they were stopped so the RCMP or DHS could call and verify their cover story. At the same time William and his wife Margarita were wintering in Oro Valley just outside of Tucson Arizona, just getting ready for a dinner with friends.
When Ryan called the Department of Homeland Security to check in, he told them they were heading to Roche Harbor from Roberts Bay. He knew that at 1600 hours in early December that there were few boats out and they would probably be asked to report into Roche Harbor by DHS anyway. They knew that the US Customs and Border Protection fast boat was headed to its base in Bellingham along with the US Coast Guard small boats. It was a good day for smuggling.
As they rounded the entrance into Johns Pass, it was 1632 and with the fog and limited visibility this meant they only needed to keep a close eye on their Raymarine E-120 plotter/radar and depth sounder. It was an easy run, a real milk run in fact. As they reached the center of the Pass (48.671981 N 123.164771 W) they dropped the four 50 kilo waterproof bags from the stern while running at 10 knots.
They were instructed by Bahdoon to just keep going once they made their drop of the drugs. Derek, always a little paranoid, wanted to know why the change, wondering if they were being set up. Bahdoon assured him that this was going to be the new way to smuggle drugs as the packages were electronically tagged with radio-frequency identification (RFID) for pick up by others. While this was true, what Bahdoon did not tell them was that Suegali Osman wanted to start minimizing what the boys knew and he did not want his US based smugglers to be able to identify or know who Ryan, Jason or Derek were. Suegali was one who believed that technology was a great tool for smuggling and a great way to keep people apart.
Suegali was also busy using technology to communicate with expatriate Somalis throughout the Persian Gulf who fed information about ships that have docked in the region and were heading for the Gulf of Aden. Suegali knows he has thousand of pirates under his control throughout the world and with Skype, instant messaging and other tools like Twitter communications were easy.
He also is reported to have corrupted the officials of the Puntland government. Puntland is a region in northeastern Somalia centered on Garowe and whose leaders declared it to be an autonomous state in 1998. The paid off officials permit the use the Port of Eyl, among others, for a safe harbor for the captured ships. In the last month, Suegali was able to capture the Sirius Star, a Saudi oil tanker that he is negotiating a $25 Million dollar ransom for. He also is expecting final payment of $15 Million for the ship from Ukraine with the tanks and heavy weapons he has at anchor in the Port.
Suegali’s strategy of capturing as many ships as possible off Somalia is profitable, but really just a cover for his operations in the waters of the Pacific Northwest. By keeping the attention focused on the Gulf of Aden, the Suez Canal and the waters off of Somalia, he has already tide up part of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, the NATO alliance, China, India and a host of other countries. All these countries have devoted their best intelligence experts on piracy to this area and while little stations like Bellingham and Comox patrol the waters of the Northwest, they are just simply unable make a dent in smuggling and are not prepared for real acts of piracy.
Since the Pender Pirates were making another $25,000 on this run, they did as instructed and dropped the bags. It was pretty clear what was going to happen anyway, with the Stuart Island runway right where they dropped the bags. A small boat was going to collect them, take them to shore and the drugs would be flown away. Their job was over.
As they emerged from Johns Pass, rather than heading over to Roche Harbor, they simply turned back west, headed past Gossip Island and the tip of Stuart, making a bee line for the Tom Point Light on Rum Island. Once they reached Rum Island, they would head back into Roberts Bay and call it a profitable day.
One of the most beautiful vistas is a bluff on Stuart Island called Lover’s Leap. It overlooks Haro Strait with views out to the Olympic Mountains and Vancouver Island. It is also the spot where John Chemlick was watching M/V Slocum as it passed by the old lighthouse on the west end of Stuart. As soon as the boys had crossed back across that invisible line into Canada John hailed the vessel Sidney Explorer from his vantage point on Lover’s Leap using his handheld ICOM VHF on Channel 68 saying he was approaching the Tom Point Light and would be back in Sidney in an hour or so.
On the other end of the radio the Sidney Explorer, a 27’ Silver Streak Aluminum Boat with a top speed of 29 knots that provided fishing and diving services out of Sidney Harbor acknowledged his call. As soon as the M/V Slocum was within a couple miles or so of Rum Island, the Sidney Explorer came from the north and headed slowly in the direction of the M/V Slocum. The Sidney Explorer hailed M/V Slocum saying they were having engine problems and asked if they could come alongside. Since they were well within Canadian waters, and had no contraband on board, the Pender Pirates pulled alongside.
As soon as they tied up to Sidney Explorer, the Pender Pirates saw Bahdoon was on board. At first nervous, Bahdoon quickly put their fears aside and let them know that their next trip not be until January when they would be going to White Rock not to drop off any drugs, but rather to pick up a few passengers.
White Rock British Columbia sits on the US/Canadian Border. The sister border town to White Rock in Washington State is Blaine. The only reason they are not the same town is the invisible border. Since the trip from Sidney to White Rock would be in Canadian waters, the boys were happy to pick up who ever needed a ride since Bahdoon told them they would be paid the same as always.
It did not occur to the boys, nor did they really care, that the reason they were picking up a “few people” was so Bahdoon and Suegali could get a team of men to Vancouver Island without having to be on one of the BC Ferry System boats where the video surveillance systems were running all the time. Suegali had spent quite a bit of money getting each of his handpicked 12 men into Canada over the last year, all into different ports of entry, at different times – some by boat, some by plane, but never the same port. Then once in, some drove, some took the train, and some flew private planes to Vancouver where they all lived in Abbotsford BC working menial jobs in agriculture, or as dishwashers at the posh Harrison Hot Springs Resort & Spa.
What Suegali did not know was that Global Transnational had smuggled Adam Julia, a native from Albania, into Bellingham Washington. Adam was a sailor on board one of the nameless Russian ships that regularly called on Bellingham Cold Storage. Adam had quietly, with the Captains knowledge, and assistance, slipped overboard in a small inflatable boat after they left BCS in the evening of November 30th. Once overboard, Adam simply took his boat across Bellingham Bay and tied it up to one of the nameless sailboats anchored in Fairhaven, a small anchorage on Bellingham Bay where a number of “free spirits” lived on their boats. With his excellent false passport and papers, superb English, ponytail, good looks and sailing experiences chronicled on his laptop, Adam was just another hippy sailor living the good life in Fairhaven.
But who is Adam Julia and why Bellingham? Who are the men being smuggled to Vancouver Island and for what purpose? Who is Global Transnational? Find out next month in the next edition of “Pirates of Poets Cove.”
