Weekend Interception in Turks and Caicos

#TurksandCaicos, May 21, 2024 – An illegal vessel transporting ONE HUNDRED and NINE (109) irregular migrants was intercepted on Saturday 18th, May 2024.

Acting Assistant Commissioner of Police (Specialist Tactical Operations) Mat Newton said, “Acting on information received from the United States Customs and Border Protection Aircraft, a vessel was spotted 15 NM south of Providenciales. Officers from the Marine Branch, TCI Regiment and TCI Border Force were deployed.

“The Penga Style, blue and grey wooden boat, about 30 feet long, with two outboard engines, was intercepted transporting NINETY-EIGHT (98) Males and ELEVEN (11) females.

“The irregular migrants were safely brought ashore to Providenciales for processing by the Immigration Task Force.”

Acting Assistant Commissioner Newton said, “I am grateful to our international partners, local partners, and my teams for successfully and safely intercepting the vessel illegally entering our borders. This shows that the layers of security in place are increasingly effective, and we continue to build our defensive measures to tackle this type of crime.”

The RTCIPF asks the public to notify the closest police station, contact 911, the Serious Crime Unit at 231-1842, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-8477, and anonymously give any information on illegal activity.

Additionally, persons are encouraged to download the CrimeStoppers P3 app and share information anonymously.