A packed migrant boat capsized off Mona Island late on Sept. 27, killing at least three people and leaving 10 others missing and presumed dead, after a crew member allegedly attacked passengers with a machete and triggered a panicked scramble into the water. The Coast Guard pulled 49 survivors from the Mona Passage, a treacherous stretch of open water between the Dominican Republic and western Puerto Rico that has become a deadly corridor for smuggling ventures.
The 40-foot homemade vessel had left Boca de Yuma the day before, bound for Puerto Rico, according to the Miami Herald. A criminal complaint cited by the Herald put the number of people aboard at 64. Most of the rescued passengers were from the Dominican Republic, with two from Haiti, and the survivors were transferred to U.S. authorities.
Federal prosecutors allege that crewman Danny De La Rosa began attacking passengers with a machete, causing them to panic and jump overboard before the boat capsized. A federal grand jury has since indicted De La Rosa along with Máximo Castillo-Cabrera and Víctor Alfonso Montilla-Espíritu Santo, each facing charges tied to human smuggling after three confirmed deaths and 10 people went missing and were presumed dead. According to court documents reviewed by the Herald, all three men face the death penalty if convicted. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Puerto Rico announced the indictment of Castillo-Cabrera and Montilla-Espíritu Santo in connection with the maritime human-smuggling venture. Survivors told investigators they had paid the smugglers between $1,000 and $5,000 each for passage, court records show.
Inside the Coast Guard's Search and Rescue
MH-60T Jayhawk helicopters from Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen took part in the rescue, while the Coast Guard also cooperated with the Dominican Republic military. The Coast Guard Cutter Joseph Doyle also took part in pulling survivors from the Mona Passage before the search was ultimately suspended on Oct. 1 with 10 people still unaccounted for.
Capt. Robert Stiles described the passage as dangerous and the boats used by smugglers as makeshift and overloaded.
A Corridor for Migrant Boats
The Coast Guard has responded to several recent migrant-boat treks in the passage.
Some of the boats intercepted in recent weeks have carried up to 75 people at a time. On Oct. 5, the Coast Guard rescued all 61 people aboard a separate overloaded boat near Cabo Cabron that was taking on water.
The danger is not new. At least 11 people died in 2022 after a separate overloaded boat capsized northwest of Puerto Rico, underscoring that this fall's tragedy is part of a pattern rather than an isolated event.
