Nine boat operators helping transport unprocessed travelers to Guam were arrested. Attorney General Leevin Camacho gave additional insight on the matter in an interview with NewsTalkk57’s Patti Arroyo this morning.
PNC’s Destiny Cruz has this stories details
Recently, Guam has experienced an influx of unlawful arrivals by way of vessels from nearby islands comprising primarily Chinese nationals.
In response, Governor Leon Guerrero, in collaboration with Attorney General Leevin Camacho, assembled a task force that included the following: the Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency, Guam Department of Agriculture, Guam Fire Department, Guam Homeland Security, the Guam Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, the Office of the Attorney General, and Port Authority of Guam.
Upon determination by the Attorney general that the arrivals violated Guam law, the task force located, arrested, and charged nine known operators of the vessels: Jianfeng Lu, Zhicong Huang, Fu Li, Guo Qin She, Ruigang Li, Xiao Juan Sun, Jian Feng Li, Fujun Zhai, and Haize Lu.
AG Camacho said, “What was going on early on, we didn’t really have a clear path forward with the power to deport, immigration, that’s all federal– but the Governor and Lutenient Governor called us into a room and said, you know, we gotta do something. So, we came up with a plan, and in the last four weeks, we met, and we figured out that there are these requirements whenever you’re transporting people to Guam or taking a boat to Guam, and that’s what we’ve been arresting and charging these individuals with.”
According to Camacho, this is still an active investigation starting with the viable component, as the authority to remove or deport immigrants lies within the hands of the federal government.
Furthermore, defendants have been released pending resolution of criminal charges, subject to conditions, including reporting to probation services. However, the Attorney General says that because the court releases individuals after assurance of their whereabouts, Guam is in a better position than before, as they can keep tabs on the offending individuals.
Camacho said, “Most of them have been… after again, kind of staying where they are staying at and agreeing to certain things, like reporting to probation three times a week– but they have been released, but they are being monitored by the court, from my understanding, and it’s again not a situation where they’re out wandering, we are keeping tabs on them.”
Destiny Cruz, PNC News First.
