Cuban man faces 30 years for immigrant smuggling operation
MIAMI, United States (AP) — A Cuban national faces up to 30 years in prison for his part in an immigrant smuggling operation from the Bahamas to the United States.
A US Attorney Office release says 54-year-old Carlos Garcia-Legon pleaded guilty Monday to multiple charges, including 14 counts of encouraging and inducing an alien to come to the country illegally. Sentencing is scheduled for July 10.Court documents show a US Customs and Border Protection aircraft spotted Garcia-Legon’s 25-foot boat near Bimini, Bahamas, in February, and officers watched multiple passengers transfer from another vessel.CBP and US Coast Guard vessels approached Garcia-Legon’s boat off the coast of Miami. Following repeated orders to stop, officers fired four shotgun rounds into his engines. Authorities say Garcia-Legon was transporting 14 passengers from various countries, including China, Jamaica, Sri Lanka and Ecuador.
