Four people are facing federal charges in connection with a migrant smuggling operation that led to a high-speed boat pursuit off the Miami-Dade coast, authorities announced. The suspects were allegedly operating a vessel carrying 15 undocumented migrants when U.S. Customs and Border Protection detected them about 21 miles east of Miami-Dade heading west toward shore. The incident occurred shortly before midnight on March 11, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.
When CBP approached the vessel about two miles from shore, the boat fled and authorities fired warning shots to stop it. As the vessel continued to flee, authorities fired “disabling rounds” into the engine which brought the vessel to a halt, officials said. The dramatic pursuit ended with the arrest of four suspects and the discovery of 15 migrants on board, including four who had previously been deported from the United States.
Taken into custody were 26-year-old Theron Don Mills of The Bahamas, who was driving the boat, along with 39-year-old Oswaldo Sisa Heredia of Ecuador, 41-year-old Joel Perez-Matos and 33-year-old Pablo Antonio Alvarez Rodriguez, both of the Dominican Republic. All four suspects are charged with illegal re-entry of a deported alien, while Mills faces an additional charge of encouraging and inducing aliens to enter the United States. The federal charges carry significant penalties, with Mills facing up to five years in prison on the inducement charge and each defendant facing up to two years in prison on the illegal reentry charges.
The incident highlights ongoing challenges with maritime smuggling operations in South Florida waters, where federal authorities regularly intercept vessels attempting to bring undocumented migrants to U.S. shores. Miami-Dade’s coastline has long been a target for smuggling operations due to its proximity to Caribbean nations and the Bahamas. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida has prosecuted numerous similar cases involving vessels carrying migrants from various Caribbean and Latin American countries.
The remaining 11 migrants who were not charged in the smuggling operation were repatriated to The Bahamas, according to federal officials. The case demonstrates the coordinated response between U.S. Customs and Border Protection and federal prosecutors in addressing maritime smuggling attempts off Florida’s coast. The four defendants will face prosecution in federal court in the Southern District of Florida, though no specific court dates have been announced.