Five migrants of Venezuelan nationality, including a minor, were rescued in the waters of the Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina by Coast Guard units of the Colombian Navy, while traveling on a boat from the San Andres island bound for Central America.
A Rapid Reaction Unit - URR of the Coast Guard Station of San Andrés was sent to the southeast of the island after the radars of the Traffic and Maritime Transport System and the Colombian Air Force, detected the boat named Grace, moving suspiciously in that sector.
When carrying out the interception at sea, the Colombian sailors found that the ship did not have the minimum security conditions to go to sea and did not comply with current maritime regulations. In addition, it was illegally transporting the five foreign passengers, reasons for which, it was taken by the crew of the Naval Institution to the main Coast Guard dock of San Andrés.
In safe port, after verifying the health status of the people, the four Venezuelans were put into custody of Migración Colombia and the minor was given to the Childhood and Adolescence Police in order to restore his rights. Meanwhile, the captain of the boat and two other crew members, originally from San Andrés, were arrested and put into custody of officials of the Judicial Police - SIJIN.
Within the framework of the Ayacucho and Almirante Padilla Naval Bicentenary Campaign Plans, the Colombian Navy, through the Specific Command of San Andrés and Providencia, will continue to carry out joint, coordinated and inter-institutional operations that lead countering the transnational crime of migrant smuggling ratifying the commitment of the Naval Institution to safeguard human life at sea.
Source: Press - Navy of Colombia
