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Smuggling boat washes up on Ventura County coastline with 16 life jackets inside

VENTURA COUNTY, Calif. - Another smuggling boat showed up along the Ventura County coastline Wednesday night with 16 empty life jackets onboard.

Crews with the Ventura County Fire Department spotted the abandoned boat around 10 a.m. Thursday morning on the Rincon coast near the Mobil Oil Piers.

16 life vests were found onboard but no people or drugs were spotted in the area. The sheriff's office believes the 16 passengers hiked up to the road and were likely picked up by a waiting vehicle.

According to the sheriff's office, panga boats have been showing up along the coastline frequently this year with about one found per week. Two of these empty smuggling boats were also found near the Mobil Oil Piers earlier this summer with one showing up in June and the other in August. Each boat was found with 37 life jackets inside.

Recently, none of these abandoned boats have had narcotics onboard meaning they appear to have been primarily human smuggling voyages.

A few years ago, the sheriff's office reported the majority of these "panga boat" arrivals were narcotics-related trips. Now, the boats showing up this summer have been carrying only people.

The sheriff's office says it would like to remind the public that the border isn't the only place where people choose to come into the country; they can arrive along the entire coastline of the United States.

Deputies said if anyone is at the beach and sees a boat full of people ground itself onto the sand, they should report it to law enforcement immediately.

People who are boating for recreational purposes almost always use ports and marinas and never beach their boats along the coastline. Deputies said a beached boat is usually a sign of human or narcotics smuggling activity.

Thursday's panga boat investigation is being handled by the Department of Homeland Security.

The government is also investigating a similar incident that occurred on Monday when a panga boat washed up on the Santa Barbara County coast with 15 passengers on board. All 15 were given food and water at the scene before being arrested.

Article Topic Follows: Crime & Courts

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Jessica Brest

Jessica Brest is a digital journalist and assignment editor for NewsChannel 3-12. To learn more about Jessica, click here.

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