Migrants In Capsized Boat Paid Smugglers $15,000 To $18,000

Authorities have released more details about the people on the capsized boat that crashed into a reef off Point Loma on Sunday, May 2.

The three passengers killed (authorities incorrectly stated that four people were killed on Sunday and Monday) in the apparent human smuggling attempt were identified as Victor Perez Degollado, 29, Maria Eugenia Chavez Segovia, 41, and Maricela Hernandez Sanchez, 35.

The county Medical Examiner's Office reported that the three drowned and blunt force head injuries contributed to their deaths.

The 29 other passengers were interviewed by authorities and revealed that they had paid $15,000 to $18,000 to be smuggled into the U.S. on the boat, reports the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Several of the passengers identified the captain of the vessel as Antonio Hurtado, who was treated in a hospital for injuries and turned over to border authorities.

Hurtado was arrested on suspicion of bringing in or harboring undocumented immigrants and assaulting an officer, according to the affidavit obtained by the Union-Tribune.

“We are working closely with our law enforcement partners as they conduct the investigation and we are carefully reviewing the matter,” Kelly Thornton, a U.S. Attorney’s Office spokesperson, said Monday, May 4. “We cannot comment further on an ongoing investigation.”

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