Plastic-wrapped bricks of cocaine frequently surface in the waters off the Florida Keys, known locally as 'square grouper.' This summer, lobster divers found a brick off Big Pine Key, about 30 miles northeast of Key West. The boat captain left it on a fire-rescue ambulance hood when no deputies were available. Others, like John Strama, a 44-year-old boat builder and mechanic, have exploited the trend, leading a ring sentenced for distributing sea-found cocaine.
Strama used his knowledge of local waterways to locate bricks dropped or dumped by traffickers. U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones warned that fishing for 'square grouper' is drug trafficking. Sheriff Rick Ramsay said cocaine packages surface nearly every week in Monroe County.
Despite Trump administration strikes on suspected drug boats in the Caribbean, operations are too far to affect the Keys. The area’s mangroves and spoil islands remain ideal for hiding drugs. Historically, teens raced to catch floating bales of marijuana in the 1970s, a precursor to today’s cocaine trade.
Strama’s father sent him to sea as a child to search for marijuana bales, per his lawyer Sam Rabin. Over time, trafficker tactics evolved from speed boats to inconspicuous sailboats and freighters. Bricks marked '333' and even a 'Tom and Jerry' cat stamp have appeared recently.
Square grouper has proven deadly: a 2011 overdose and a 2015 double homicide linked to cocaine sales from sea-found bricks. One boat mate is serving life in prison. Drug smuggling in the Keys remains active and dangerous.
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