Seven on boat turned over to Border Patrol

Seven suspected illegal immigrants were found stranded on a 20-foot boat a mile offshore near Mission Bay early Sunday, Coast Guard officials said.

Officials received a call at 6:26 a.m. that the vessel had broken down a mile north and a mile west of the north Mission Bay jetty.

The six men and one woman onboard had flagged down a nearby sport fishing vessel for help, offering to pay for a tow to shore, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Jarrad Pellerin. Officials were alerted and the boat was towed in to lifeguard headquarters where U.S. Border Patrol agents took custody.

The people on the boat had no identification nor documentation of citizenship, Pellerin said.

Border Patrol spokesman Steven Pitts said all seven individuals have been identified as Mexican citizens.

Two of the men will be charged with smuggling, Pitts said. Three others will be held in custody as material witnesses.

All individuals were still in the country as of Sunday evening.

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