CBP U.S. Border Patrol Thwarts Maritime Smuggling Attempt along San Diego Coast

San Diego — U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested two Mexican nationals after they illegally entered the country on a personal watercraft last Saturday.

At approximately 3 p.m., agents assigned to maritime anti-smuggling operations spotted a PWC with two occupants cross the international maritime boundary into the U.S. from Mexican waters.

Agents responded to the area and encountered two male Mexican nationals ages 22 and 34. Agents questioned both the PWC operator and passenger, who admitted to illegally entering the U.S. The two men were taken into custody and transported to a local Border Patrol station for processing and further investigation.

The 22-year-old male operator of the PWC is being held in custody on alien smuggling charges. The 34-year-old male is awaiting removal proceedings. The PWC was seized by the U.S. Border Patrol.

The U.S. Border Patrol is a member agency of the Maritime Unified Command. The MUC is comprised of the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Office of Air & Marine and U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as well as state and local law enforcement partners operating in the San Diego and Orange County maritime domain. The MUC utilizes the fusion of intelligence, planning and operations to target the threat of transnational crime along the coastal border.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.