LAGUNA BEACH – Border Patrol officers have been spotted on at least three separate occasions checking the immigration status of waiting passengers at the city's bus depot, authorities and residents said.

Border Patrol officials would not provide specifics about their actions at the depot, but did say that agents had been in the area in connection with an ongoing investigation. But residents said about a half-dozen Border Patrol vehicles have been spotted at the bus depot on three separate occasions, with the most recent incident occurring early Friday morning.



About eight Border Patrol vehicles were spotted surrounding the depot Friday morning, said Mary Dolphin, a resident who saw agents. One person was seen being held in the back of a patrol car, while another was being held in handcuffs.

Dolphin said one agent asked to take a look inside one of the buses, but did not bring anyone out.

Lt. Jason Kravetz of the Laguna Beach Police Department said local officials became aware of three separate incidents after receiving calls from city residents.

Local law enforcement officials checked with Border Patrol agents and were told that agents were checking the immigration status of people at the dept, Kravets said.

Another incident was also reported on May 21.

Local police were not notified of the incidents before they occurred, he said.

When asked if any, or how many, people had been taken into custody by agents, Border Patrol Agent Jose Morales said he could not provide any details because of an ongoing investigation. Morales would also not release information of how many times agents had been in the area.

"We're not going to get into it," Morales said. "It's part of an ongoing investigation."

In the past few months, police have found boats abandoned in the city's beaches – crafts believed to have been used by illegal immigrants making their way into the US along the coast. Authorities would not say whether the recent immigration checks were connected to the boats.

Word of the immigration checks has already spread to a day-laborer site located about two miles from where the checks took place.

Irma Ronses, manager of the day laborer site, said laborers had heard about the checks, but border patrol agents had not been seen near the site.

Located along Laguna Canyon road, the site serves as a place for day laborers to gather be picked up for work, regardless of their residency status.

Contact the writer: shernandez@ocregister.com or 949-454-7361

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