Four charged with trafficking 128 migrants to Puerto Rico face coercion measures
A court in La Altagracia imposed coercion measures on four people linked to two operations involved in the illegal trafficking of migrants bound for Puerto Rico, with 128 intercepted.
La Altagracia court imposes coercion on migrant trafficking network to Puerto Rico
A court in the La Altagracia judicial district imposed various coercion measures on four defendants linked to the organisation and execution of two operations involved in the illegal trafficking of migrants bound for Puerto Rico, according to 7dias.com.do.
The Specialised Prosecution Against Illegal Migrant Trafficking and Human Trafficking (PETT), headed by court prosecutor Yoanna Bejarán, presented charges following coordinated actions with the La Altagracia Public Prosecutor's Office, the Navy of the Dominican Republic, and the United States Coast Guard (USCG) in Puerto Rico.
During the operation, authorities intercepted 128 people in total: 77 in the first operation and 51 in the second. All intended to reach Puerto Rican territory irregularly aboard clandestine vessels.
The four defendants and their measures
Vladimir Lajara Aguasvivas, alias "el Mello", identified as the organiser of the journeys, received three months of preventive detention. The defendants Wiston José Muñoz Rosario and Berto De La Rosa Ortega, linked to the operation in which 77 people were intercepted, received economic guarantee, periodic presentation, and prohibition from leaving the country. Iván Peña Faña, identified as captain of the vessel used in the second operation—where 51 people were arrested—received the same precautionary measures.
The four are accused of attempting to transport persons fleeing justice outside national territory, as well as dozens of undocumented Haitian nationals in irregular migratory status, in accordance with Law no. 46-25, which amends Law 137-03 on Illegal Migrant Trafficking and Human Trafficking. Should the aggravating circumstances attributed to the case be confirmed, those implicated could face sentences of up to 30 years' imprisonment.
National and international coordination
The Navy of the Dominican Republic stressed that the results obtained demonstrate the importance of national and international cooperation in dismantling criminal structures that profit by putting migrants' lives at risk during clandestine maritime journeys. The naval institution reaffirmed its commitment to continue strengthening operations of surveillance, intelligence, and maritime interception in close coordination with the USCG.
The PETT, for its part, announced that it will maintain its collaboration with the Navy to identify, pursue, arrest, and bring to justice organisers, captains, collaborators, and other members of these criminal networks.
The authorities made an appeal to the public not to participate in clandestine maritime journeys and to refrain from collaborating, financing, or facilitating the activities of organisations engaged in illegal migrant trafficking, a practice that has historically caused loss of life and suffering in numerous Dominican families.
Source: Google News PR — Crime