MARATHON, Fla. – Officials took 19 Cuban migrants into custody Thursday morning after their homemade boat came ashore in Marathon, according to the U.S. Border Patrol.
Chief Patrol Agent Walter N. Slosar, who heads the Border Patrol’s Miami sector, said the group consisted of 16 men and three women.
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The migrants will be processed for removal proceedings, he said.
Slosar tweeted a brief video of the small, light yellow-green boat the migrants arrived on, which had the name “El Triunfador” (”The Winner”) hand-painted on its side.
Less than a week before Thursday’s landing, a Cuban migrant vessel capsized in the Straits of Florida, killing at least two and leaving five people missing.
U.S. Coast Guard crews have intercepted more than 3,700 migrants at sea this fiscal year, amid an upsurge in migration from the economically-distressed island.
#Alert: 19 Cuban migrants were taken into U.S. Border Patrol custody this morning after arriving to Marathon, FL on a homemade boat. There are 16 adult males & 3 adult females in the group. The migrants will be processed for removal proceedings. #thursday #cbp #florida pic.twitter.com/G2PTwf5IcD
— Chief Patrol Agent Walter N. Slosar (@USBPChiefMIP) August 11, 2022