A man arrested off the Oregon coast while on a sailboat containing gallons of liquid meth was sentenced to more than three years in federal prison on Thursday and five years of supervised release.
John Philip Stirling, 65, from Canada, previously pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine under the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act.
Stirling was arrested in April 2019 while traveling north about 250 nautical miles from Newport in international waters, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. The vessel, named Mandalay, had a home port of Seattle. When Coast Guard officials tried to communicate with Stirling, they say he went below deck and would only respond through VHF radio.
Coast Guard personnel confirmed the Mandalay was a U.S. flagged vessel, boarded, and found Stirling alone on the sailboat. They say he did not have vessel documentation and refused to produce identification. Upon questioning, officials said Stirling’s speech began to deteriorate and he displayed signs of a possible drug overdose. Read on.
The best thing about this is the boat pictured above is from Stirling’ failed coke smuggling in 2013. Some guys just never learn…
