Nineteen Aliens Apprehended in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Salem-News.com

(St. Thomas, U.S.V.I.) - Early this morning U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents and officers apprehended 19 aliens, 16 Cuban nationals and three Brazilian nationals, after making an illegal entry into this United States territory.

Ramey Sector Border Patrol agents arrested 16 Cuban aliens in the Cruz Bay area in St. John, after receiving information of an alleged disembarkation.

Upon arrival from St. Thomas, Border Patrol agents interviewed a suspected group and confirmed their nationality and immigration status.

The group is composed of 11 males, three females and two juveniles, who are in good physical condition.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air Operations aircraft is transporting the migrant group to the Ramey Border Patrol Station in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, for further immigration processing.

Later in the morning, CBP Field officers arrested three female, undocumented, Brazilian nationals during an inspection at the Red Hook Ferry Terminal in St. Thomas.

Initial immigration status verification revealed that Maria Campos, 59, has a prior record when in 2006 federal authorities at the Miami International Airport removed her.

The females are being transported, by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Detention and Removal Operations, to the Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in San Juan, for transfer to Aguadilla for further processing.

After processing at the Border Patrol Station, the 13 Cuban adults will receive a Notice to Appear (NTA) before an Immigration Judge for further proceedings under the Cuban Migration Agreement of 1995 and the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966.