US authorities have apprehended 170 illegal aliens at sea off both US Coasts in recent weeks, while interrupting five large-scale human smuggling attempts.
The largest of these occurred on May 9, 2026, when US Customs & Border Protection (CBP) intercepted a small boat dangerously overloaded with 64 illegal aliens off Puerto Rico.
When the man piloting the vessel refused to stop, CBP Officers disabled it by firing shots into its outboard motors.
Once the boat was dead in the water, those aboard surrendered without further resistance. CBP Officers determined that 58 were from the Dominican Republic and six were from Haiti. All aboard were arrested and transported to Mayaguez, where US Border Patrol Agents took custody of them for removal proceedings.
A week earlier, another human smuggling attempt off Puerto Rico came close to a deadly ending. A similar small boat overloaded with 42 illegal aliens was spotted approaching the hazardous and rocky shoreline of Aguadilla by Puerto Rico Police Officers.
Fearing an impending tragedy, the police officers requested urgent assistance, which prompted a response by US Coast Guard vessels and aircraft. US Border Patrol Agents also raced to the scene and determined that all aboard the boat made it ashore.
However, due to the difficult mountainous and rocky terrain, two migrants were unresponsive, another sustained a leg injury, and two others also required medical treatment. A Coast Guard helicopter crew quickly performed a successful Medevac rescue of a migrant found to be in serious condition, while Emergency Medical Services that also responded to the scene transported the other injured migrants to the hospital by ground.
All of the illegal aliens, who were found to 33 citizens of the Dominican Republic, eight Haitians and one Ecuadorian, were taken into custody by the US Border Patrol.
A few days later, the CBP intercepted 25 migrants, all from the Bahamas, at sea east of Miami.
Human smugglers have also recently been caught attempting to land large groups on the US West Coast.
On May 1, 2026, the CBP reported the arrests of 29 illegal aliens from Mexico found aboard a “panga” intercepted in the Pacific Ocean near Long Beach, California. CBP Los Angeles/Long Beach Seaport’s Strike Team and Air Marine Operations’ Long Beach Marine Unit jointly participated in that mission.
And, on Friday, May 22, 2026, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Haddock interrupted an attempt to smuggle ten illegal aliens from Mexico aboard a 20 foot cabin cruiser 27 miles east of San Clemente Island. U.S. Border Patrol agents took custody of the group at Ballast Point, California.
Are you surprised by the number of large-scale human smuggling attempts at sea that US authorities have thwarted recently?
Share your thoughts in the comments to this story!
Abrazos,
Jack Beavers
