The U.S. Coast Guard on Monday evening intercepted a boat carrying 21 illegal immigrants from three countries headed toward San Diego.
At around 10:45 p.m., U.S. Customs and Border Protection informed Coast Guard officials at the Joint Harbor Operations Center about a 40-foot panga-style vessel heading north about 40 miles from the maritime boundary line, as reported in a press release on Wednesday by the Coast Guard.
Two Coast Guard cutter teams, with help from CBP, were able to stop the boat, at which point they discovered that it was carrying 21 passengers.
According to the Coast Guard’s press release, initial interviews indicated that everyone on board claimed Mexican nationality. However, further checks revealed that two of the passengers were actually nationals of Guatemala and El Salvador.
The passengers were safely transferred to CBP custody, according to the Coast Guard. (Coast Guard)
In addition, the Coast Guard is assisting in the transportation of undocumented immigrants to specified locations in Texas and California, where the Department of Defense will then arrange for their international transport while in custody.
“In accordance with the President’s Executive Orders, the Coast Guard continues to surge assets and leverage its unique capabilities to protect America’s borders, territorial integrity, and sovereignty,” the Coast Guard acting commandant, Adm. Kevin Lunday, said in a Jan. 25 statement.
The Department of Homeland Security says it has made 7,300 illegal immigrant arrests in the last week alone.
