On April 3, 2023, the Walton County Sheriff’s Office deputies were called to three separate locations on the beach after suspicious packages were found washed ashore.
- The packages were discovered by beachgoers who quickly notified authorities.
The first package was found on Scenic Gulf Drive in Miramar Beach, according to the WCSO. The beachgoer found a clear Ziploc bag that appeared to contain some type of narcotics. Upon confiscation, the package was later tested and confirmed to be cocaine.
The second package was found on Gulfview Heights beach access, where a caller reported a suspicious package that appeared to be a brick of cocaine. The package was black in color and wrapped in a bio bag with a logo sticker on the outside. The package was confiscated and taken to the South Walton substation for testing.
The third package was found at Grayton Beach State Park, where deputies found another brick of cocaine wrapped with a different logo. This package was also taken into evidence for testing and destruction.
- In total, the WCSO says this is more that $100,000 in cocaine that washed ashore.
The Walton County Sheriff’s Office is accustomed to responding to calls for suspicious items found on the beach, such as ordnance, drugs, or other unusual items that wash ashore from the Gulf. The authorities have urged residents and visitors to immediately call (850)-892-8111 and avoid attempting to retrieve or open these items, as they can be dangerous.
In response to these incidents, the Coast Guard has been notified, and the VICE/Narcotics Unit is actively investigating these cases. The authorities have not released any information regarding the origin of these packages or how they ended up on the Walton County beaches.
This is not the first time Walton County beaches have been in the news for the discovery of suspicious items. In 2022, a group of beachgoers discovered an unexploded ordnance on the beach, prompting a response from the authorities.
