The Navy, U.S. Coast Guard detain 31 boatpeople headed to Puerto Rico

Santo Domingo.- A boat headed for Puerto Rico with 31 undocumented Dominicans on board was intercepted Tuesday by the Dominican Navy and U.S. Coast Guard.

Among the detainees figure 25 men and six women.

In a statement, the Navy also said that during an operation in the community Mata Gorda, Rio San Juan township, it confiscated a yola type homemade boat of around 26 feet long and 8 feet wide, to be allegedly used for an illegal crossing to Puerto Rico.

The announcement comes several weeks after Navy Chief of staff Rafael Lee Ballester announced a near zero traffic of boatpeople headed to Puerto Rico.