A naval campaign carried out by an alliance between the Spanish Empire forces in Puerto Rico, the Danish government in Saint Thomas and the United States Navy captured Roberto Cofresí's pirate sloop Anne. The powers pursued Roberto Cofresí's pirate flotilla in March 1825 because of the economic losses suffered by the parties to the pirates, as well as diplomatic concerns caused by their use of the flags of Spain and Gran Colombia which menaced the fragile peace between the naval powers. Several of those involved had been attacked by the freebooters. Among the diplomatic concerns caused by Cofresí was a robbery carried out by several of his subordinates, the catalyst of an incident that threatened war between Spain and the United States known as "The Foxardo Affair", eventually leading to the resignation of his rival, pirate hunter David Porter.
Sailing under the authorization of the Danish West Indies, the coalition employed two local ships, including a former victim of the pirates named San José y las Animas and USS Grampus of the West Indies Squadron. A ship from Gran Colombia, named La Invencible, also provided support during the initial stages. The final naval engagement took place on March 5, 1825, and began with a trap set at Boca del Infierno, a passage off Bahía de Jobos, Puerto Rico. The flagship of Cofresí's flotilla, the sloop Anne (otherwise known as Ana), was baited by the set up. Surprised and outnumbered, the pirates abandoned the ship and escaped to shore, where they were captured by Puerto Rican authorities and placed on military trial. With the execution of Cofresí, the West Indies Anti-Piracy Operations were considered a success and he came to be known as "the last of the West India pirates".
Background
Cofresí's modus operandi
While still regarded as a Don, Cofresí began his criminal life in Puerto Rico by leading a band of highway robbers which made a profit by assaulting farmers and merchants, from whom they would steal merchandise which was later sold by close friends and family. The government soon began a campaign to capture the gangs related to these crimes, most of which were from Cabo Rojo. It was another respected and wealthy man, Juan Bey, who first exposed Cofresí as the man behind these bands while being prosecuted for murder. This led to the arrest of him and several collaborators, but he was able to escape. A fugitive on land, Cofresí had already turned to piracy by 1823. Due to previous experience as a seafarer, he knew the geography of the region well and exploited this to his advantage. While on the run, the pirates would enter the adjacent Boquerón Bay, which provides ample hiding spots through the mangroves and a cavern system that runs throughout its karst geography. The bay itself proved a strategic spot for the distribution of the plundered goods. Bahia de Tallaboa at Peñuelas and Bahía de Jobos served as additional hideouts in the southern coast, being surrounded by a series of islets and coral reefs that are only navigable by small draft vessels. Additional options included shanty towns such as those employed by salt harvesters that littered Cabo Rojo, Guanica and Lajas.
The actions of Cofresí came close to starting a war between Spain and the United States due to the losses of the latter to pirate ships flying the flag of the former. Consequently, Governor Miguel de la Torre soon earned a particular interest in the actions of Cofresí and was quoted stating that his name "gained celebrity due to his fearlessness and atrocities, [not even] the tranquil neighbor, the laborious merchant [or] the honest farmer felt safe from the claws of this criminal". In 1824, he enacted a series of measures that relegated the local criollos in favor of Spanish immigrants, minimizing the influence of the Ramirez de Arellano family. The newly arrived loyalists in turn responded by exposing the symbiosis that existed between this class and the pirates, soon establishing a prominent campaign to capture Cofresí. Despite the official posture on piracy and his bold actions, capturing Cofresí would prove complicated, since he was already gathering a mythical reputation in Puerto Rico and becoming highly influential. Guayama's major, Francisco Brenes, documented how the pirates gathered several friends among the local population who would also protect them. His figure was held with such regard that some members of the higher classes were arrested due to their links with Cofresí. Cofresí was said to exploit this in his favor, creating an underground circle that would share information with him.
Despite his influence among the criollos, most of the pirate's close associates were black or mixed-race men in their 20s and early 30s who were incapable of thriving under the casta system, and instead opted to become thieves, murderers and other sorts of criminals. Such was the case of José "Pepe" Cartagena, Juan Antonio Delgado Figueroa, José de Rosario, Juan "El Indio" de los Reyes, Carlos Díaz de la Concepción, Miguel "Beltrán" Ramos Ayala, Juan Carlos Ascencio de Torres, Torres Juan Francisco "Ceniza" Pizarro and Miguel "El Rasgado" de la Rosa. Others such as José Rodríguez, Jaime Márquez, Pedro Alacán and Joaquín "El Campechano" Hernández had previously served aboard the privateering vessels Punta Pitre, La Fortuna, Josefa, Carmen and La Porteña. The real age of Hernández has been debated, since reports claim that he was either Cofresí's cabin boy or an older man, with the latter being most likely. Following a series of diplomatic disputes, the issue of letters of marque by Spain was suspended during the final months of 1823, which fueled the recruitment of experienced sailors into the crew.
Relevant attacks
On June 9, 1824, Cofresí boarded a schooner named San José y Las Animas near Peñuelas, Puerto Rico. The vessel was fully loaded and carried over 6,000 pesos. The ship, property of Santos Lucca, was captained by Francisco Ocasio and was ferrying the cargo for a third party, the Mattei family. On that day, it was completing a journey between Saint Thomas and Puerto Rico, which was its usual route. Ocasio reacted to the attack by sailing towards land and allowing his guests to disembark, but was unable to outmaneuver the pirates, who quickly boarded and stole all but a scant portion of the merchandise. The routes between Puerto Rico and the Danish West Indies would become a favored target for attacks, focusing on ships from the islands of Saint Thomas and Saint Croix. The assaults that Cofresí's flotilla led against international vessels soon attracted the attention of the West Indies Squadron, which began pursuing him after the capture of the American merchant vessels named John and William Henry. At the height of this search, the schooners USS Beagle, USS Grampus and USS Shark were patrolling the waters of Puerto Rico. Despite this, Cofresí was undeterred and instead adopted a strategy of using the speed of its vessels to potshot the military ships. On the evening of January 25, 1825, while Sloat scouted the west coast on Grampus, the pirates intercepted it. Cofresí then commanded a bold attack, threatening the military crew with musket fire and demanding that it drop sails. When Grampus retaliated, the pirates outsailed the schooner and docked at Naguabo, Puerto Rico, where they continued their plundering streak. The crew of Grampus tried to track them, but after failing to locate anyone in hours abandoned the area.
On February 10, 1825, Cofresí boarded a sloop named Neptune while it was docked at Jobos Bay. The pirates ambushed the merchant sloop's crew, led by its owner, Salvador Pastoriza, by firing muskets at it. The merchant was able to escape from the ship amidst the gunfire, but was injured and witnessed as the pirates looted Neptune. After completing this task, Cofresí commandeered the sloop out of the Bay and assimilated it into his flotilla. Neptune was then used in the attack on two Danish vessels, property of W. Furniss, once again disrupting the trade of the Danish West Indies. By targeting this route the pirates directly affected merchant Juan Bautista Pierety, who worked several routes between the ports of Guayama, Salinas, Ponce and Saint Thomas. Besides being the owner of several of Cofresí's victims, he reported personally seeing part of the pirate's flotilla, a sloop and schooner, docked at Boca del Infierno. On February 15, 1825, Cofresí led the attack on another Danish sloop named Anne at Quebrada de Palmas port in Naguabo. The pirates employed the same tactic as before, surprising the crew while they were distracted with the cargo. Cofresí then mugged Anne's captain, Beagle's navigator John Low, stealing $20 from him. The ship's crew was forced to leap overboard and were left behind while the pirates commandeered the vessel.
Foxardo (Fajardo) Affair
On October 24, 1824, the second-in-command of Cofresí's fleet, Bibián Hernández Morales, led a group of pirates to the Danish colony of Saint Thomas. There they plundered an establishment named Cabot, Bailey & Company, carrying 5,000 dollars in loot and returned to Puerto Rico. Aware of the incident, Charles T. Platt of the West Indies Squadron left that port aboard Beagle two days later, accompanied by one of the affected merchants. The vessel first encountered the pirates off Vieques, but was unable to capture any. However, they were able to gather information that led them to Fajardo. Upon arriving there, Platt, who was not wearing a uniform, explained his operation to the port captain through a translator. The crew was then taken before Mayor Francisco Caro and handed him a letter (originally intended for an associate of the merchant named Juan Campos) with the details of the robbery, but the functionary ordered a search of his ship and documents. Platt left the vicinity in protest and walked towards Beagle, but was arrested along with Midshipman Robert Ritchie and categorized as a suspect himself, being held prisoner under the supervision of the town's mayor. While this happened, some of the stolen goods were tracked to Naguabo with the help of Campos (who was later uncovered as a double agent and one of Cofresí's cohorts). Hours later, the process to transfer him to a local jail was completed, but Platt offered resistance and threatened to fight back. This was followed by more delays, but the crew of Beagle was ultimately allowed to leave port without further repercussions.
Upon returning to Saint Thomas, Platt quickly contacted Commodore David Porter and presented his account of the events at Fajardo. After interviewing all of the involved, the officer concluded that the mayor and his subordinates were in fact buying time for the pirates, in the process allowing the mobilization of loot to a less conspicuous location. Shortly afterwards, the local Consular Agent Stephen Cabot brought him reports that Campos had bought the stolen goods. Incensed by this revelation, Porter ordered that an unsanctioned expedition was to leave port. The commodore led the flotilla aboard the frigate USS John Adams, and was joined by Grampus and Beagle. Porter arrived at Fajardo on November 14, 1824, and delivered a letter demanding an explanation to the local authorities. In this missive, the commodore also warned that, if ignored, he would march with his troops to the town within an hour, and that if the military tried to defend it, the result would be the "total destruction" of Fajardo.
However, the Spanish authorities took the action as an attack and began arming the port's artillery. Noticing this, Porter sent sailors to disable it and subsequently commanded the landing of two hundred additional marines. The division marched onwards until they halted at the town's entrance, where the Spanish stood ready to defend it. Aware that the diplomatic crisis could lead to a full blown war between Spain and the United States and still within the grace period, the mayor and the captain of the port arrived at the scene and offered apologies to Platt and Porter. The marines were then directed to march to the vessels and returned to Saint Thomas. The local United States ambassador soon received confirmation of Campos's real allegiance. The Spanish government then took further actions to prevent repercussions, removing both the mayor and the captain of the port from their offices, and beginning a process to purge the accomplices of the pirates. The government of the United States did its part to control the damage, and Porter was soon placed on court-martial.