Illegal immigrants land at St Thomas Bay

timesofmalta.com - Illegal immigrants land at St Thomas Bay

Tuesday, 14th July 2009 - 08:23CET

Twenty-eight illegal migrants have been apprehended after landing at St Thomas Bay this morning - the first arrivals in nearly two months.

The group was made up of 22 men and six women, who were all in good health. All are claiming to be from Somalia.

They arrived on an outboard-motor powered 13-foot long boat, and were relatively clean and well stocked with food and water onboard, the AFM said.

The police said the migrants were arrested as they disembarked from the boat.

They were taken to the Detention Compound at the Ta' Kandja Police Training Facility.

The AFM said that during the night, its Operations Centre at Luqa Barracks unsuccessfully tried to locate another boat carrying 16 migrants, who had used their satellite-phone to call for assistance through an unidentified person who in turn alerted the rescue centre in Palermo.

As AFM radar and observation posts around the Islands were alerted, the Maritime Squadron's P-61 offshore patrol vessel was diverted to a position, some 23 nautical miles East of Delimara Point. A communications search via satellite-phone to establish contact with the boat was also unsuccessful.