Summary

On September 30, 2013, in U.S. District Court, West Palm Beach, Florida, Coastal Shipping Holding, Inc., previously known as G&G Marine, Inc. (Coastal), pleaded guilty to illegal transportation of hazardous materials, failure of a hazmat employer to train its employees, and recklessly loading and stowing explosives on a vessel without approval from the U.S. Coast Guard. The vessel was docked at Port Everglades, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and was bound for the Bahamas.

The investigation revealed that Coastal received and accepted a shipment of explosives that were intended to be shipped out of Port Everglades to Nassau, Bahamas. Coastal employees illegally transported the explosives in a commercial truck from their warehouse staging area to the dockside facility, and onto an ocean-going commercial vessel, placing them alongside other hazardous materials.

As part of the plea agreement, Coastal agreed to a fine of $750,000, to be paid in full at sentencing.