December 30, 2009 2:54 PM

Police find boat believed used for immigrant smuggling

By SALVADOR HERNANDEZ
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

LAGUNA BEACH – An abandoned boat found in the darkness of Aliso Beach this morning is believed to have carried at least a dozen immigrants, who then made their way through to a waiting van, authorities said.

Officers with the Laguna Beach police found several life jackets, gasoline canisters and a waterlogged GPS unit on the beach and nearby parking lots, the remnants of what they said appears to have been a trip by illegal immigrants into the beachfront city.

The 18-foot boat was discovered by a resident at about 2:40 a.m., who said he saw the boat come ashore and several people running out of it, said Lt. Jason Kravetz. Some of the people were wearing life jackets.

The boat had an outboard motor and was rocking between the shore and the ocean when officers arrived, he said. Ten fuel containers, some of them with some gasoline inside, were littered on the sand.

"It appears that about a half-hour before we got the call, that at the very least 12 people came ashore and fled through the parking lot," Kravetz said.

Officers followed a trail of footprints and sand into the Aliso Creek area, where more life jackets were also found.

Investigators believe the people on the boat ran toward Monterey Street, where a vehicle picked them up.

"That's where the trail ends," he said.

Officers called sheriff's Harbor Patrol to look for other vessels, but nothing more was found, he said. Authorities also contacted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who have taken custody of the boat.

On Nov. 11, officers with the Laguna Beach police had a similar incident happen, Kravetz said. A 28-foot skiff was found a mile away from where this boat was found, also empty, he said.

Authorities searched with a helicopter in the area, and Coast Guard officials were notified, but no one was found in the water, Kravetz said.

The case has been turned over to ICE, he said.

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