A boat captain was shot down Friday while carrying at least 14 migrants to Florida – after first crashing into a sheriff’s boat as it tried to stop him, officials said.
A specialist marine unit vessel attempted to intercept the suspicious boat as it headed toward Jupiter shortly after 9 a.m., the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office (PBSO) said.
“After contacting the captain on board the vessel, the captain rammed the PBSO Marine Unit Vessel damaging two engines,” the sheriff’s office said, noting there were no injuries.
A sheriff’s office helicopter and additional marine units later helped chase the boat, which eventually landed north of the Juno Beach Pier.
Capt. Bazaelius Francois, 30, was “immediately taken into custody,” the sheriff’s office said — with 14 immigrants also detained to be handed over to the Border Patrol.
The sheriff said the captain rammed his marine unit boat when it tried to stop him. Facebook/PBSO – Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office
Francois faces two counts of aggravated battery on a police officer, the release said.
It was unclear if it was the same case in which the Border Patrol said 17 migrants were detained on a boat that landed in Jupiter Friday. There are 16 from Haiti and one from the Bahamas, the province Chief Patrol Agent Walter Slosar said.
The Border Patrol also shared a photo of the boat in which 17 migrants arrived in Jupiter. Facebook/PBSO – Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office
The incident occurred amid an influx of illegal immigrants.
An average of 1,400 immigrants a day cross into Arizona illegally, US government statistics show.
Last month 42,561 immigrants were found in the Tuscon sector, including Lukeville, making the region the most popular spot nationwide for illegal entry and the nation’s busiest border crossing.
There, immigrants can easily pass through 114 wide-open welded gates.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
