A recent US military strike targeting an alleged Venezuelan drug boat has left two Trinidad and Tobago (TT) citizens dead, including Chad Joseph, a resident of Las Cuevas. The incident, which occurred on October 14 in international waters off Venezuela’s coast, has sparked controversy as Joseph’s family questions the relevance of his familial ties to the deceased drug lord Vaughn “Sandman” Mieres. Joseph, believed to be among the six men killed in the strike, was Mieres’ nephew. Mieres, a notorious figure, was charged during the 2011 state of emergency as a gang leader but was released due to insufficient evidence. He was later killed in a 2019 attack on his fortified home. Joseph’s aunt, Lynette Burnley, emphasized that Joseph had distanced himself from his past and was leading a normal life, urging the public not to tarnish his character. Meanwhile, Trinidad and Tobago’s Minister of Homeland Security, Roger Alexander, has advised Joseph’s family to file a missing person’s report, referencing a 2018 incident where Joseph was arrested on a drug-carrying vessel. This strike marks the fifth such operation by the US in its campaign against alleged narco-traffickers in the southern Caribbean, with the death toll now exceeding 30. Survivors from the latest strike, two men from Colombia and Ecuador, have been repatriated to their respective countries.