July 2, 2008 — The U.S. Coast Guard's Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico presence got a new commander Wednesday with the appointment of Capt. Eduardo Pino in San Juan, the agency reported.
Pino, previously chief of the Response Enforcement Branch for the Coast Guard's Seventh District in Miami, took over responsibility for the U.S. Coast Guard in San Juan from Capt. James E. Tunstall, the agency's San Juan chief since 2005.
"It is a true honor to have the opportunity to lead the men and women of Sector San Juan," Pino said in a written statement. "I also look forward to earning the trust and friendship of our federal, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands partners. Together we can continue to strengthen our relationships to better secure our maritime border against illegal voyages, drug trafficking and potential terrorist threats. It is of equal importance to continue working to save lives and protect our environment through search and rescue, pollution response and disaster preparedness response operations."
The Coast Guard, under the Department of Homeland Security, is the area's premier maritime safety and rescue agency, and also protects the territory from illegal immigration, drug smuggling, piracy and other illegal activities.
During Tunstall's three-year tour as the Sector San Juan Commander, Coast Guard crews interdicted 6,896 migrants, approximately 12,000 pounds of cocaine and 44,440 pounds of cocaine, and saved more than 296 lives and $3.3 million in property. The Caribbean Border Interagency was also created, a venue for Department of Homeland Security agencies and the U.S. Attorney's Office to share intelligence and leverage limited resources.
The Biometrics-at-Sea Program — which fingerprints and photographs alleged illegal immigrants and then uses satellite technology to immediately compare the migrants' information against databases showing wanted criminals — was also successfully tested and implemented during Tunstall's tenure. The program resulted in the prosecution of more than 120 migrants who attempted to enter the U.S. illegally, and a 60-percent drop in illegal-migrant flow since the program was implemented in November 2006.
"This has been the highlight of my career," Tunstall said. "It has been an absolute honor to serve the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands."
Sector San Juan, headquartered in La Puntilla, Old San Juan, is a 1.3-million-square-mile area of responsibility that encompasses the eastern Caribbean. The sector has six shore units, including Air Station Borinquen, Aguadilla, one of three major air stations in the Coast Guard's Seventh District, and two of the busiest ports in the nation, with more than three million visitors per year.
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