New York: The US Border Patrol agents arrested five foreign nationals, including two Indians, during a smuggling attempt near Algonac in Michigan state.
Border Patrol dispatchers monitoring the Remote Video Surveillance System on February 20 observed a vessel on the St Clair River cross the international border near a known smuggling route and immediately contacted agents in the area.
The station agents responded to the area and immediately encountered five people in the vicinity of where the vessel was observed heading towards the shoreline, according to the Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
All the five admitted to having just crossed the border from Canada, by boat.
The agents from the Detroit Sector also observed two migrants completely drenched and shivering due to the frigid temperature.
They said during interrogation that they had fallen into the river while climbing out of the boat.
The agents identified two subjects from India, and the remainder from Nigeria, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic.
“The smuggler tried to take advantage of darkness and freezing temperatures to mask his criminal activity. Bad people will go to great lengths to avoid arrest, placing themselves and others in danger. Thankfully, Detroit Sector agents and communication specialists are protecting our Nation around the clock, even in adverse weather,” said Chief Patrol Agent Robert Danley. All five of them are being processed for US immigration violations.
–IANS