MONTEGO BAY, St James — Three Cubans who entered Jamaica by boat and spent months working in western Jamaica without contacting immigration authorities were fined and ordered removed from the island when they appeared in the St James Parish Court last Wednesday.

Esequiel Henvandez Hernandez, Alfredo Castro Pupo, and Oslani Kennieryero Torrez appeared before Judge Natiesha Fairclough-Hylton on charges of illegal entry.

The court heard that the men arrived by boat on October 28, 2024, landing on the coast of Lilliput. They remained there for five days before finding work in Coral Spring, where they were employed for four months.

They later relocated to Coral Gardens and continued working with a construction company until their arrest on May 8.

According to the allegations, the men made no attempt and expressed no intention to contact immigration authorities. Their Cuban identification documents were shown to police at the time of their arrest to confirm their nationality.

The allegations were read to the men with the aid of a translator, and each pleaded guilty to the charge.

Judge Fairclough-Hylton fined each man $5,000 or five days in jail and imposed a removal order.