United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced that Vladimir Penda, 27, of the country of Montenegro, entered a plea of guilty before United States District Court Judge Harvey Bartle III on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine on a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.
In 2019, Penda, a crew member who worked onboard the shipping vessel MSC Gayane as the ship’s fourth engineer, conspired with others to engage in bulk...