[PUBLISH] In the United States Court of Appeals For the Eleventh Circuit

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No. 22-10576 ____________________

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, versus JHONATHAN ALFONSO, a.k.a. Jhonathan Alfonzo,

Defendant-Appellant.

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Appeals from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida D.C. Docket No. 1:21-cr-20306-CMA-1 ____________________ USCA11 Case: 22-10576 Document: 65-1 Date Filed: 06/14/2024 Page: 2 of 30

2 Opinion of the Court 22-10576

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No. 22-10589 ____________________

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, versus JOSE MIGUEL ROSARIO-ROJAS,

Defendant-Appellant.

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Appeals from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida D.C. Docket No. 1:21-cr-20306-CMA-3 ____________________

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No. 22-10590 ____________________

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, USCA11 Case: 22-10576 Document: 65-1 Date Filed: 06/14/2024 Page: 3 of 30

22-10576 Opinion of the Court 3

versus JOSE JORGE KOHEN,

Defendant-Appellant.

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Appeals from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida D.C. Docket No. 1:21-cr-20306-CMA-2 ____________________

Before BRANCH, LUCK, Circuit Judges, and BERGER,∗ District Judge. BRANCH, Circuit Judge: The United States Coast Guard seized the Appellants on a vessel bearing no indicia of nationality in what is known as the Dominican Republic’s Exclusive Economic Zone (“EEZ”). When the Coast Guard boarded the vessel, no one claimed to be the vessel’s master, but the crew asserted that the vessel was of Colombian nationality. Colombia, however, was unable to confirm or deny registry of the vessel, which rendered the vessel a “vessel without nationality” 1 and subject to the jurisdiction of the

∗ The Honorable Wendy Berger, United States District Judge for the Middle

District of Florida, sitting by designation. 1 We note that while the relevant statute uses the term “vessel without

nationality,” 46 U.S.C. § 70502(c)(1)(A), the parties and many of our cases USCA11 Case: 22-10576 Document: 65-1 Date Filed: 06/14/2024 Page: 4 of 30

4 Opinion of the Court 22-10576

United States under § 70502(d)(1)(C) of the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act (“MDLEA”), 46 U.S.C. §§ 70501–70508. 2 Once drugs were discovered on the vessel, the Appellants were arrested, brought to the United States, and prosecuted and c