Man rescued in Florida plane crash is accused of smuggling cocaine
NBC News • • nation
Key Points:
- Jonathan Gardiner, a passenger on the plane that crashed off Florida's coast, has been arrested on cocaine smuggling charges related to a conspiracy dating back to 2023.
- Gardiner was found carrying $30,000 in Bahamian currency linked to a Bahamian politician previously connected to cocaine shipments from Colombia.
- The crash involved a twin-engine turboprop traveling from Marsh Harbor to Freeport, with all 11 passengers and the pilot surviving and being rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard and Air Force.
- Gardiner was also found with three phones at the time of the crash, according to federal prosecutors.