Border Patrol detains 15 after panga boat reaches shore in San Diego
Fifteen people suspected of trying to enter the country illegally were taken into custody early Friday morning when their panga boat reached shore at Mission Beach in San Diego, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The boat had been spotted about 3:45 a.m. west of the Belmont Park area of Mission Beach. A Border Patrol vessel and a helicopter were sent to monitor the panga.
At about 4 a.m., the boat made landfall at Mission Beach where the group of 15 -- one woman and 14 men -- were taken into custody without incident, officials said.
The 15 were taken to a Border Patrol station for processing and the panga was seized, officials added. The boat, 35 feet in length and with a single outboard engine, was seized.
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