BORDER NEWS
Ten men have been charged with hijacking in connection with an attempt to sail from Haiti to the US. The men, all once police officers in Haiti, hijacked the boat last week. The boat was discovered by the US Coast Guard south of the Bahamas, and the 121 people on board were returned to Haiti. The men rented the boat by posing as missionaries, and forced the crew to change course before the journey was over. ********* A five-month long investigation in Georgia has led to the arrest of 22 people working without INS authorization. Among those arrested was a man suspected of smuggling the immigrants from Arizona to Georgia, as well as providing them with fraudulent documents to allow them to work. The smuggler, who has been wanted for years in connection with a robbery charge filed in 1993, has been charged with being a fugitive from justice and possession of fraudulent documents. The others were charged with possession of false documents. ********* A recent Coast Guard video of a confrontation with 12 Cuban migrants shows that violent acts are continuing as migrants take increasingly desperate actions to reach the US. In the video the men are brandishing machetes and throwing rocks at a Coast Guard vessel. It is the thirteenth violent confrontation in the past year. The Coast Guard says such incidents will continue as long as Cuban migrants believe that it increases their chances of being brought on shore. Under a 1994 immigration accord with Cuba, Cubans apprehended at sea are returned to Cuba, while those who make it to the US are allowed to apply for permanent residency after one year. 
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