By: Spokesman Newsroom
BASSETERRE, St.Kitts (Friday 28th August 2020) — A local boat captain and two illegal immigrants have been jailed and charged in the aftermath of a recent human smuggling operation interrupted by local authorities at Palmetto Bay, while a fourth individual is being sought by police.
Three of the men were remanded to Her Majesty’s Prison on Tuesday, August 25. Captain of the boat, Norton Hanley of Boyd’s Village, was charged for the offences of Smuggling, Illegal Entry and Entering the Federation without Written Permission. Passengers Juan Jose Cuesta, a Dominican Republic national, and Enrique Torres Rojas, a Venezuelan national, were each charged for the offences of Illegal Entry and Entering the Federation without Written Permission.
Local authorities indicate that acting quickly on information received on August 14 from a concerned citizen, the St. Kitts and Nevis Coast Guard and the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police were able to thwart the smuggling operation. The vessel, named ‘Black Kings’ and registered in St. Kitts and Nevis, was seized by the Coast Guard. A fourth individual remains at large.