U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), along with the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and the Puerto Rican Police Department (PRPD), intercepted vessels carrying 126 undocumented migrants from the Dominican Republic, Cuba and Haiti over four separate incidents.
The first incident occurred on Jan. 20 when a CBP Marine Patrol Aircraft detected a “yola”-type vessel with three adult females and 27 adult males on board. CBP agents then coordinated with USCG Cutter Joseph Tezano for interception. The 30 undocumented passengers claimed citizenship from Haiti or the Dominican Republic.
The following day, USCG Cutter Joseph Tezano intercepted another yola vessel northwest of Aguadilla, with 38 undocumented immigrants on board.
On Jan. 22, CBP’s Air and Marine Operations Maritime Patrol Aircraft detected a third yola vessel off the northwest coast of Auguadilla, which carried 37 migrants on board.
A CBP AMO MPA detected a fourth yola vessel on Jan. 25 and coordinated an interception with the PRPD’s Marine Unit west of Rincon. In total, 21 undocumented migrants were on board.
“A CBP aircraft consistently patrols throughout our Caribbean area with a firm determination to detect smuggling attempts,” Johnny Morales, director of air operations for the Caribbean Air and Marine Branch, said. “These four interceptions demonstrate our collective capabilities to deter attempts into our borders.”
Biometric data revealed that 30 of the undocumented migrants had prior immigration or criminal record for which they had been removed. All migrants were taken into custody for processing and will be charged with violations of federal immigration laws.