Turks and Caicos, August 8, 2017 – Providenciales – The Ministry of Border Control and Employment advises the public that around 2:30 a.m. today Tuesday 08th August, 2017, an illegal migrant vessel with 53 Haitian nationals was intercepted in the area of West Caicos.
The interception of this 35-foot vessel, was due to the collaboration of several agencies, in particular the United States Coast Guard, TCI’s Coastal Radar Station, the Marine Branch of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police and private citizens. The Marine Branch confirmed the vessel as a sloop with 16 females and 37 males on board. At approximately 4:11 a.m. the sloop arrived in Providenciales where it was met by Immigration and other Task Force officials.
The 53 illegal migrants are currently detained and are being processed for repatriation and entry on the Immigration Stop List. The last attempt of a sloop to enter the islands illegally was the interception of 99 persons on Monday 31st July, 2017, three persons were charged and the others repatriated.
The Honourable Deputy Premier and Minister of Border Control and Employment, wishes again to remind persons of his Government’s commitment to improving the protection of our borders and tighter controls on immigration processes. Additionally, he stated that illegal migration threatens the lives and livelihood of our people and that persons found to be engaged in the smuggling of humans would be prosecuted under the law. He advises all persons to observe the immigration laws of the Turks and Caicos Islands as anyone found in breach of same will be dealt with accordingly.
The Ministry of Border Control and Employment Services hereby extends its profound gratitude to persons in the community and all agencies who have assisted with this and other operations and initiatives, your contribution and support remains invaluable and critical to our success.
Press Release: TCIG
