U.S. says suspected drug trafficker rescued from plane crash off Florida linked to Bahamas politician

Updated on: May 20, 2026 / 6:54 AM EDT

/ CBS/AP

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Opposition leaders in the Bahamas are demanding an investigation into a suspected drug trafficker who survived a recent plane crash near Florida and was allegedly found with roughly $30,000, according to a U.S. federal agent. The money was inside a bag labeled with the name of an unidentified high-ranking politician from the archipelago.The suspect, who was deported to the Bahamas more than a decade ago after being convicted on drug and money laundering charges, is accused of trafficking cocaine through the Bahamas to the U.S.He also is accused of meeting the unnamed politician in October 2024 at the Bahamian Parliament in Nassau to talk about a deal involving some 1,000 kilograms (2,200 pounds) of cocaine, according to a court document filed May 14 in the Southern District of New York, a day after the plane crash. It stated that the politician "could provide security for the planned cocaine shipment" and was introduced to an unnamed suspect as a "future associate."The allegations are the latest blow to the Bahamas, whose police commissioner resigned in December 2024 after a sergeant and two officers were indicted in what the U.S. Justice Department at the time called "a massive cocaine conspiracy enabled by corrupt Bahamian government officials.""Since at least May 2021, drug traffickers have smuggled tons of cocaine through The Bahamas for importation into the U.S. with the help and support of corrupt Bahamian government officials," the Justice Department said in 2024 when announcing charges against the chief superintendent of the Royal Bahamas Police Force.Michael Pintard, leader of the opposition Free National Movement party, claimed Monday that he does not believe the Bahamas' prime minister, who secured reelection the day of the plane crash, will hold anyone accountable."We issued warnings about the close relationship between members of this administration and characters of interest to police locally and internationally," he told reporters.