The U.S. Coast Guard intercepted a pair of boats last weekend off the coast of San Diego, and more than 30 Mexican nationals aboard were detained, the agency said.
The first vessel, a suspected smuggling vessel, was first detected around 11 p.m. Friday, about 27 miles west of San Diego.
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Navy aircraft monitored the boat, which crossed the U.S.-Mexico maritime boundary around 7 a.m. on Saturday, the Coast Guard said in a release.
The vessel crossed into the U.S. contiguous zone, a region which extends 24 miles from the coast, around 10:35 a.m.
A boat crew boarded the vessel and located eight Mexican nationals on board.
Footage released by the Coast Guard from what appears to be a body-worn camera shows a Coast Guard officer boarding the boat with his weapon drawn.
He tells those on board in Spanish to put their hands on their heads.
Those onboard were transferred to the custody of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
A day later, at 1:35 p.m. on Sunday, a Coast Guard cutter intercepted a 45-foot boat 6 miles off the coast of Point Loma.
The vessel was boarded, and 19 Mexican nationals, including a boy and a girl, were located.
They were transferred to the custody of Border Patrol.
