Two Bahamian nationals were arrested on federal charges related to alien smuggling and illegal re-entry
Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Anthony Salisbury, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s, Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), Thomas G. Martin, Acting Chief Patrol Agent, U.S. Border Patrol (USBP), Miami Sector, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Coast Guard Sector Miami, and Rick Bradshaw, Sheriff, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office (PBSO), made the announcement.
Donald Nehemiah Watson, 35, of the Bahamas, was charged by complaint with one count of alien smuggling, in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1324, and failure to heave, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2237 (Case No. 19-MJ-8188). If convicted, Watson faces up to 15 years in prison. Travis Jamaal Moss, 24, of the Bahamas, was charged by complaint with one count of reentry by an illegal alien after deportation, in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1326(a) (Case No. 19-MJ-8189). If convicted, Moss faces up to 10 years in prison. The defendants were both arrested and are scheduled for a pre-trial detention hearing on May 14, 2019, in West Palm Beach Federal Court.
According to allegations contained in the court record, on May 6, 2019, officials with U.S. Border Patrol and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit encountered a vessel approximately two nautical miles east of West Palm Beach, Florida. As the boat approached one mile off shore, it quickly turned around and fled east. The pursuing law enforcement boat, later joined by the U.S. Coast Guard, attempted to stop the vessel which continued at high speed for more than 10 nautical miles, until it ran out of fuel. The vessel was captained by Watson and occupied by Moss, an illegal alien who had been previously removed from the United States.
A complaint is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigation efforts of HSI, USBP, CBP Air and Marine Unit, U.S. Coast Guard Sector Miami, U.S. Coast Guard Station Lake Worth Inlet, and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Schiller.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
