An ongoing investigation is currently being conducted into the case of 11 Cuban migrants who landed near Key Largo, Florida. The migrants are now being processed for removal, as revealed in a tweet by Samuel Briggs II, the Acting Chief Patrol Agent of the U.S. Border Patrol in the Miami sector. This was Briggs' inaugural social media post for the new year.
Briggs stated, "Key Largo, FL: Yesterday, U.S. Border Patrol agents with support from @keyssheriff responded to a migrant landing & encountered 11 Cuban migrants. The migrants were processed for removal proceedings. Investigation remains ongoing. #NewYear #floridakeys #Cuba."
Migrant landings are not uncommon in Puerto Rico either. A news release from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) reported that last year, 16 undocumented migrants were apprehended after they were left by a makeshift boat near a shopping mall in Hatillo. The authorities were alerted to a potential smuggling incident occurring near the Plaza del Norte mall via a phone call.
The news release further detailed that both Hatillo Municipal Police and Puerto Rico Police Department Officers assisted Border Patrol agents in reaching the scene where they discovered an abandoned 30-foot fiberglass vessel behind the mall. The boat was blue and equipped with two outboard engines.
Desi DeLeon, chief patrol agent for the Ramey Sector warned against illegal crossings saying, "Our message for anyone who is thinking of entering the United States illegally crossing the Mona Passage is simple: don’t do it." He added that such attempts endanger not only those attempting to cross but also law enforcement officials tasked with rescuing them.
The news release concluded by noting that agents managed to apprehend 16 undocumented migrants following an exhaustive search which included 12 adult males from the Dominican Republic, two adult males from Haiti, one adult female from Haiti and one adult female from the Dominican Republic. The Haitian female was taken to Camuy Health Services, a local hospital, for medical evaluation after she reported being dehydrated.
