Thu | May 21, 2026

Officials detain 14 migrants, reportedly from Jamaica, who came ashore in Florida

Published:Thursday | June 17, 2021 | 2:22 PM
U.S. Border Patrol officials detain some of the multiple migrants who came ashore on the intracoastal waterway, Thursday, June 17, 2021, in Pompano Beach, Fla. (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP

POMPANO BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Authorities detained 14 migrants who were travelling in a boat that came ashore hitting a sea wall in South Florida on Thursday.

WPLG-TV reports the migrants were coming from Jamaica and had first travelled to The Bahamas. One of the migrant men told the TV station as he was being handcuffed in Pompano Beach, Florida, that he was fleeing from violence in his country.

“There's killing going on there. We want a better life. No life is in Jamaica right now,” the man said. He was not identified by name.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection did not immediately respond to a request for more information.

A witness said he saw the boat nearing the shore very slowly. A resident in the neighbourhood said she saw one of the men run through her yard.

Follow The Gleaner on Twitter and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.