CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (Border Report) -- A U.S. Coast Guard twin-engine turboprop plane takes off on its nightly patrol over the Gulf looking for human and drug smugglers from Mexico, as well as illegal poaching.

Border Report flew with the crew of five on Thursday evening as they searched the vast waterways just north of the Mexican border looking for illegal activity, as well as anyone in distress.

The Coast Guard has historically conducted search and rescue operations in the Gulf, but maintaining law and order on the these waterways has been keeping "Coasties" (as they call themselves) busy lately as Mexican cartels have expanded their activities to include poaching red snapper north of the border.

Mexican fishermen, called lancheros, operate lanchas, or panga-like thin, 20- to 25-fo

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