Target Palos Verdes: Smuggling by sea
Tom Redfield Jr. was drinking a cup of coffee at 5:30 in the morning on Dec. 10 waiting for some plumbers to arrive at his home near Portuguese Bend when his dogs started to bark. Redfield looked outside and saw police in his backyard and heard helicopters flying overhead. Turns out there was a 27-foot open-hulled panga boat filled with two dozen illegal immigrants that landed on the beach just below Redfield’s home. A U.S. Coast Guard boat patrols the waters off Palos Verdes. Photo “They beached the boat and they all ran up the hills,” Redfield said. “We live in a fairly rural area so it’s a natural place for people to be able to scatter. There’s a million places to hide.” This wasn’t the first time. The landing marked the third incident this year a boat smuggling either drugs or humans landed on the secluded beach— not to mention the discovery of an empty panga during the year possibly marking a successful trip. “It’s ridiculous,” Redfield said. “I live in one small area and it’s just gotten out of hand. It’s been pretty disruptive.” Federal law enforcement officers apprehended 23 people that morning in connection to an alleged human trafficking operation. An affidavit released…
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