Seven undocumented individuals were arrested early Thursday morning after attempting to illegally enter Aruba by boat, while a significant quantity of drugs was also confiscated during the operation.
In the early morning hours, marine radar detected a suspicious vessel navigating toward Aruba. The Coast Guard’s Maritime Operations Center (MOC) immediately deployed a Metal Shark interception boat, while an aircraft was launched to monitor the situation from the air.
When Coast Guard officers approached the vessel, they observed seven people onboard, along with multiple packages suspected to contain narcotics. The boat was promptly intercepted and escorted to the Savaneta Pier for further investigation.
Authorities confirmed that all seven individuals were undocumented Venezuelan nationals who were attempting to enter Aruba illegally. The drugs found onboard were seized immediately.
As part of the operation, the Coast Guard helicopter was also deployed to conduct an extensive search along various parts of Aruba’s coastline. Through close cooperation with multiple units of the Aruba Police Force, additional packages were detected and recovered in the northeastern coastal area of Aruba.
All seven individuals and the confiscated drugs were handed over to the Aruba Police Force, which has launched a formal investigation. Authorities confirmed that the seized narcotics have since been destroyed.
