BROWNSVILLE, Texas – While on a law enforcement patrol in the Brownsville shipping channel late Monday, the crew of a Coast Guard 41-foot utility boat from Station South Padre Island discovered two undocumented migrants and 240 pounds of marijuana on a small raft that was being paddled across the waterway.
The raft had one man, along with several bales of marijuana, onboard and another man was in the water attempting to push the raft across the channel. The two men were safely taken into custody onboard the utility boat.
A 33-foot response boat and crew from Station South Padre Island were dispatched shortly after the discovery and helped transfer some of the bales to the station. Upon arrival, custody of the undocumented migrants, the contraband and the raft was transferred to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers.
“This avenue of smuggling is common in this area, and can be difficult to interdict. However, once the men in the raft committed to crossing the channel, they left themselves vulnerable to detection by law enforcement. All agencies involved: Coast Guard, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Customs and Border Protection – Air Marine Branch, worked together seamlessly for a very positive outcome; securing our maritime border,” said Lt. Mickey Lalor, commanding officer of Coast Guard Station South Padre Island.
