The US Coast Guard during the past week intercepted three separate boats loaded with illegal migrants off the coast of Puerto Rico. Here are the three, in order, followed by the Border Patrol’s statement as to their disposition.
In the first operation, on Wednesday, Oct. 23, the Coast Guard Cutter Joseph Napier stopped a 26-foot “makeshift vessel” north of Aguadillo, Puerto Rico, and arrested seven citizens of the Dominican Republic.
Border Patrol: “Six of the migrants from this case were repatriated to the Dominican Republic, while one other migrant awaiting prosecution was transferred to U.S. Border Patrol custody, Oct. 24, 2024.”
Then, on Friday, the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Paul Clark spotted a 25-foot migrant vessel off Puerto Rico’s Mona Island with 17 men and six women said to be from the Dominican Republic.
Border Patrol: “Nineteen migrants from this case were repatriated to a Dominican Republic Navy vessel off Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, while four others awaiting prosecution were transferred to U.S. Border Patrol custody in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Sunday.”
In the most recent interception, on Saturday a Coast Guard air crew out of Miami spotted a migrant boat off the coast of Mona Island in Puerto Rico and dispatched the Cutter Paul Clark. The crew took 27 migrants — 22 men and five women from Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
Border Patrol: “Twenty-two migrants from this case were repatriated to a Dominican Republic Navy vessel just off Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, Sunday, while five others awaiting prosecution were transferred to U.S. Border Patrol custody in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.”
For more, see the NY Post.