Panga Boat Holding 20 Washing Up On Malibu Shore Part Of Trend

Malibu CA

16 August, 2021

3:12 PM

Description

MALIBU, CA — Immigrants on a packed panga boat that washed ashore in the Malibu area are recovering today after being treated for dehydration and hunger. According to the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, 20 people spent three days in the small boat journeying from Baja California to Malibu. The panga boat washed up on the shores of Malibu Thursday morning, reported The Malibu Times. The case is currently being investigated by the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The 20 passengers included four females and 16 males, all Mexican nationals, reported NBC Los Angeles. The incident is part of a growing trend of human or drug smuggling via panga boats along the Los Angeles County shoreline, and it's the second time this summer that a panga has washed ashore in Malibu. Border Patrol Agent Shane Crottie said this year is seeing mounting cases of "maritime events" such as this one. "We've already seen 221 maritime events," Crottie told NBC Los Angeles. "We've seen over 1,500 apprehensions...[and] unfortunately, five deaths, this fiscal year already." The boat was discovered before 8 a.m. Thursday by a California State Parks ranger. It had washed up on the shores of Thornhill Broome in Ventura County, west of the county line in unincorporated Malibu. The Ventura County Sheriff's Office was called to apprehend the passengers. After the passengers on the boat were seen fleeing eastward — toward LA county — the LA County Sheriff's Department was called in for assistance. Lieutenant Jim Braden of the LASD told The Malibu Times the panga boat's journey began in Baja California, according to statements gathered at the scene. One of the men said he had been traveling on the boat for three days, said Braden. Border patrol agents indicated these boats generally travel at night, with no beacon lights, few life jackets and little to no food or water. In June, an empty panga boat was found abandoned on the shore in Malibu. In 2020, U.S. Border Patrol agents seized 60 pounds of marijuana near an abandoned panga boat that was beached at Deer Creek Beach in Malibu. SEE ALSO: 60 Pounds Of Marijuana Seized Near Abandoned Panga In Malibu Grounded Panga Boat Near Malibu Pier Triggers Investigation