CARLSBAD, Calif. (AP) — Border Patrol agents have arrested 20 Mexican nationals, including a documented gang member, as they arrived in a small boat on a San Diego County beach.
Customs and Border Protection officers say the agents spotted the group on South Ponto Beach about 2:40 a.m. Monday during a routine patrol.
They arrested 16 men and four women but the two suspected smugglers managed to escape in the boat.
Officers conducted an ocean search but were unable to find the vessel.
The 26-year-old gang member, who had been previously deported, was booked into federal jail pending prosecution for re-entering the United States.
©2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
