REGION: Illegal immigrant boat landings increase in North County

Smugglers aim to avoid detection by traveling longer distances, authorities say

By EDWARD SIFUENTES - esifuentes@nctimes.com | Posted: Saturday, November 7, 2009 5:30 pm | (2) Comments


Several small boats carrying dozens of illegal immigrants have landed on North County beaches lately in what authorities say is a dangerous and increasingly frequent route for human traffickers.

Tighter security along the U.S.-Mexico border is forcing more and more smugglers to use the Pacific Ocean as an alternate route for moving their human cargo, authorities say.

"It's just the nature of smuggling organizations to be as flexible and mobile as possible to avoid detection," said Lauren Mack, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in San Diego.

In fiscal year 2008-09, 430 people coming into the country illegally by sea were arrested in San Diego County, according to federal authorities. That figure is nearly double the 230 people arrested in the previous fiscal year.

Authorities say it's difficult to know exactly how many illegal immigrants may be successfully entering the country by boat.

The relatively low number of arrests at sea, compared with the arrests along the land border, would suggest the total may be only a fraction of the thousands of illegal immigrants who come into the country each year, a migrant rights activist said.

Gaining notoriety

Victor Clark Alfaro, a human rights activist in Tijuana, said he believes that relatively few people are using boats to come into the country illegally. And it's not a new trend, either, he said.

People have been using the ocean to sidestep authorities for a long time, said Clark Alfaro, who heads the Binational Center for Human Rights in Tijuana. More people are being caught because more federal resources have been devoted to stop them, he said.

"It's a method that has been used for many years," Clark Alfaro said. "What may be happening is that in recent years, they are being detected more often by authorities."

Mike Carney, deputy special agent with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement's office of special investigations, said he agreed more people are being caught because of increased security at sea. But he said he also believes that more people are trying to use the water as an alternative to land border crossings.

Authorities have also increased coordination among various agencies to address the problem, including the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Marine Interdiction unit and local law enforcement agencies.

Hot spot

The rise in water-borne smuggling has been noticeable since the May 2006 launch of Operation Jump Start along the San Diego-Tijuana border, which put more Border Patrol agents and National Guard troops on the U.S. side of the border, authorities say.

Other recent measures have tightened the land border even more.

A relatively new trend in arrests is the increase in the number of people landing on North County beaches, Carney said: In their efforts to evade authorities, smugglers are traveling farther north of the border.

One of the most popular landing spots in North County is an approximately 5-mile stretch of shoreline from Dog Beach in Del Mar to Torrey Pines, officials said. Carlsbad's Ponto Beach and Encinitas' Beacon's Beach also are frequently used.

The reason these beaches are attractive is their relatively close distance to major highways where smugglers can quickly take their cargo, Mack said.

Recent arrests

Since August, more than 100 people have been arrested in North County.

More recently, U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested 21 suspected illegal immigrants traveling on a 15-foot boat who landed on Beacon's Beach on Nov. 3.

Two days earlier, 13 suspected illegal immigrants were caught at the Oceanside Harbor Marina on a 22-foot boat. That was just a day after authorities intercepted an 18-foot boat about 10 miles west of Imperial Beach carrying eight suspected illegal immigrants.

The boats are also increasingly being used to smuggle drugs. Authorities have seized more than 50,000 pounds of marijuana in boats off San Diego County's shores since October 2008, compared with about 9,000 pounds the previous 12 months and 10,000 pounds the year before.

'It's serious'

Carney said the small boats are difficult to spot in the water and on radar. They often travel at night, especially in foggy weather, making them hard to see. A Global Positioning System device, or GPS, and a cell phone are usually the only instruments used by smugglers to navigate the dark waters, Carney said.

Officials say they worry the sea ventures could turn deadly, because often the boats are overloaded and the pilots inexperienced. The boats frequently travel in the dark, without lights, putting them at risk of running into other vessels, Carney said.

Though authorities have found no evidence of fatalities, Carney said a group was rescued last year after many hours at sea when their boat's engine broke down.

"It's serious," he said. "The last thing we want to happen is to see bodies washing up on shore."

'Menu of choices'

Sometimes the boats launch from as far away as Ensenada, a port city about 70 miles south of San Diego. For longer trips, smugglers sometimes change boats or refuel before entering U.S. waters, Carney said.

It is unclear whether people trying to cross the border prefer to travel by boat rather than walk through the harsh and deadly terrain in the mountains and deserts east of San Diego. Mack, the ICE spokeswoman, said the smuggling fee is typically higher for a boat, ranging from $3,000 to $5,000.

Smugglers who take illegal immigrants by land charge less than $3,000, Mack said.

Clark Alfaro said people who want to cross illegally into the country will always have options.

"Look, it's like a menu of choices," he said. "There will be coyotes (smugglers) that use boats, others who will use the port of entry, others the mountains and deserts, but I believe that the boats are used by a small number of coyotes and that it is not a commonly used method."

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