WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Two Bahamian men have pleaded guilty in South Florida federal court to attempting to smuggle six people by boat into the U.S.
Court documents show 31-year-old Wardell Hall and 23-year-old Rico Jerome Miller entered the pleas Thursday in West Palm Beach. They face a minimum of three years prison and a maximum of 10 years at sentencing in October.
Authorities say Miller brokered the trip with Hall for $2,400. The passengers attempting illegal U.S. entry were from Jamaica, Trinidad and Ecuador.
Passengers told investigators they boarded a boat in the Bahamas in April and were to be dropped off near Miami. Instead the boat became disabled east of the St. Lucie Inlet and was intercepted by a Coast Guard cutter. The boat eventually sank. No one was injured.
Associated Press