This Thursday, a group of 33 migrants was detained by the Puerto Rico Police, while they were sailing along the coastal area of the northwestern municipality of Aguadilla on the island. According to the United Rapid Action Forces (FURA) of Aguadilla, the boat was about 12 miles from Punta Borinquen.
According to the authorities, the 30-foot boat was carrying 29 men and 4 women, the nationality of the migrants has not been disclosed. In addition to that, the group of 33 migrants were handed over at sea to United States Coast Guard personnel, who took charge of the crew and the vessel.
Coast Guard returned 44 immigrants to the Dominican Republic, after also intercepting the two boats in which they were traveling on the west coast of Puerto Rico, one of them near Aguadilla. The Coast Guard has detained 1,473 immigrants in the waters of Puerto Rico from October 1, 2022 to May 31, 2023.
This same month, the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (DNER) reported that a total of 57 immigrants were abandoned by a group of smugglers who were transporting them near the west coast of Puerto Rico. So far, the criminal group has not been captured for these actions against the 57 victims.
In a statement, the authorities detailed that the 57 immigrants arrived with the group of smugglers at the nature reserve the day before. The victims would be 44 men, 12 women and a minor, although the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources did not specify the nationality of the migrants.
All the migrants were in good health and in the custody of the island’s immigration authorities. “The boat that was transporting them left them stranded near the area known as Playa Mujeres and Carabinero,” the statement said.
With information from EFE
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