Coast Guard intercepts migrant smuggling boat in Malibu

(NewsNation) — Coast Guard and Customs and Border Protection intercepted a boat suspected of carrying smuggled migrants off the coast of Malibu on Monday. 

During a routine patrol, the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Blackfin spotted a 41-foot pleasure craft operating 16 miles off the Malibu coast at 4:16 p.m. 

Law enforcement teams promptly arrived on the scene and apprehended 23 migrants attempting to enter the country illegally.  

Air and Marine Operations took control of the vessel, towing it to shore along with the individuals onboard for further processing by special enforcement group officers. 

“These overloaded vessels are inherently dangerous, and our extensive partnerships in the area are essential to keeping boaters safe and enforcing the nation’s customs and immigration laws,” said Commander Keith Robinson, chief of law enforcement at Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach. 

Despite constant monitoring of maritime traffic, only about 30% of migrants entering the U.S. on smuggling vessels are apprehended, according to the U.S. Coast Guard San Diego. 

There is some type of migrant interception happening in the waters off southern California every day as human smuggling boats are constantly being launched from Mexico, according to the San Diego Coast Guard. 

Maritime apprehensions are up 800 percent since 2017, with 600 migrants being stopped in just the first two months of 2023, Lt. Commander Eric Watkins, USCG San Diego station, told NewsNation. 

Boats are disguised to look like ordinary maritime traffic, making it hard for authorities to know which vessels to stop. 

Last year, more than 800 migrants died while trying to cross the southern border illegally, according to Customs and Border Patrol. 

NewsNation’s Nancy Loo contributed to this report.