Illegal Cubans and Nicaraguans Busted in Belize

As many as eighteen undocumented migrants were detained after illegally entering Belize earlier this week. The group which consists of sixteen Cubans and two Nicaraguan adults was busted in a cane field near the outskirts of Carmelita Village in Orange Walk District. The operation on Tuesday night was carried out by members of the Mobile Interdiction Team, as well as customs officers. The foreign migrants were accompanied by three Belizeans, including Saul Alexander Blanco. Under interrogation, the Cubans stated that they flew to Nicaragua and traveled along a terrestrial smuggling route until they arrived in Benque Viejo where they were met by a pair of Nicaraguans in Calla Creek Village. From there they traveled by vehicle to another location known as Posito in the vicinity of Carmelita Village. While in Posito, the group was to have been picked up by another vehicle, but they were nabbed by police who responded to the area. The white van that was driven by Saul Blanco was impounded, while the driver of the black van escaped. Two other vehicles, a blue Ford F-150 pickup driven by Nair Castillo, as well as a green Nissan Xterra driven by Avid Romy Briceño, a teacher of Orange Walk Town, was also intercepted. According to the migrants, they were en route to the Mexican border where they would have proceeded to the United States. A statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs earlier today notes that the Department of Border Management and Immigration Services has seen an increase in the number of Cubans and other nationals entering Belize via irregular means. These individuals are using refugee programs to avoid repatriation and are being turned over to Help for Progress. On Wednesday, the department was informed that thirteen Cuban nationals who were released to the Human Rights Commission of Belize following a Supreme Court ruling on March twenty-third, were no longer at the shelter.  A total of thirty-nine Cuban nationals whose objective is to reach the U.S./Mexico border using Belize as a transit point, have been taken into custody.