Trawler Halted, Passengers Held

A 180-foot ship packed with more than 100 suspected illegal immigrants was intercepted by the Coast Guard in international waters about 150 miles southwest of San Diego, officials said Friday.

The Chi Hung, a converted fishing trawler of undetermined registry, was stopped by the cutter Munro on Thursday afternoon after the trawler was seen by a Coast Guard plane on routine patrol.

What aroused the suspicion of the Coast Guard was not immediately clear.

Petty Officer Greg Folkins, a spokesman for the Coast Guard in Alameda, said a boarding team found more than 100 passengers, believed to be of Asian descent, aboard the Chi Hung.

“Their nationality has not been determined at this time,” Folkins said. “It is suspected that they were being smuggled into the United States.”

Folkins said the Coast Guard was flying food and blankets to the Chi Hung to make the passengers more comfortable.

“Our primary concern is their safety,” he said. “The State Department will decide what to do next.”

Susan Snyder, a State Department public affairs officer in Washington, said a multi-agency investigative team was being flown to the Chi Hung to determine the origin and status of the ship, its crew and its passengers.