Feds suggest boat found near Fort Myers Beach used for Cuban smuggling
By Rachel Myers • rmyers@news-press.com • August 8, 2008


The brand new 28-foot Seafox was loaded with food, three jugs of water, several cases of soft drinks and more than 460 gallons of fuel.


There was also a satellite telephone and a GPS unit.

Allegedly piloting the vessel was an 18-year-old refugee — homeless, jobless and with no family nearby.

Prosecutors believe he and his passenger may have been starting a 200-mile trek to gather Cuban nationals and bring them to U.S. shores.

Agents from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement said the driver of that vessel, Yancarlos Riveras-Camallea, 18, led the U.S. Coast Guard on a 26-minute chase 30 miles off the coast of Fort Myers Beach on Wednesday night, ignoring commands to stop until .50-caliber rounds fired at the vessel’s twin engines caused it to sputter, smoke and eventually quit running.

This was after the men on board tried to bribe someone at the Johnson Boat Ramp on Lovers Key with $500 to not report them for suspicious activity, according to ICE agent Donald Zerfoss.

Riveras-Camallea and Luciano Miguel Rios Aranguern were detained, though Aranguern was eventually released without being charged. Riveras-Camallea was arrested for failure to “heave-to,â€