Human smugglers charged after panga boat capsizes killing 4 off San Diego coast

Two alleged radical smugglers person been charged aft a panga vessel holding migrants capsized disconnected Imperial Beach, San Diego, sidesplitting 4 passengers, national prosecutors said Monday.

The incidental happened during unsmooth surf and an statement reportedly broke retired betwixt the skipper and those connected board.

According to a merchandise from the Department of Justice, David Alfonso Barrera Nunes, a Mexican nationalist believed to beryllium the boat’s captain, was arrested Saturday and charged with transportation to the deaths of the 4 passengers.

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Four migrants died erstwhile an overloaded panga vessel capsized successful six-foot waves disconnected Imperial Beach aft motor problems sparked arguments betwixt the skipper and passengers aboard. (Petty Officer 3rd Class Roberto Nieves/Defense Visual Information Distribution Service via AP)

A 2nd man, Luis Enrique Barreto Goitia, besides a Mexican national, was charged with "Bringing successful Aliens Resulting successful Death and Bringing successful Aliens for Financial Gain," per the release.

A rider connected the vessel was besides charged with being a antecedently removed alien who illegally reentered the U.S. He was astir precocious removed connected Nov. 3, 2025, and was archetypal deported successful 2012.

The incidental began Nov. 14 erstwhile Customs and Border Protection agents were alerted to a tiny vessel crossing the planetary maritime boundary.

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Captain David Alfonso Barrera Nunes refused passengers' pleas to instrumentality to Mexico earlier his panga vessel overturned successful unsmooth surf, resulting successful 4 deaths astatine Imperial Beach. (Google Maps)

About an hr later, they recovered a capsized panga successful six-foot waves disconnected Imperial Beach arsenic survivors came retired from the surf.

Nine radical were thought to beryllium aboard; 4 died and 5 were rescued oregon detained and taken to section hospitals, per the release.

Passengers told of an ordeal successful which the vessel had motor problems, sparking an statement betwixt the skipper and respective passengers who pleaded with him to crook backmost to Mexico.

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People successful Tijuana, Mexico look though the US-Mexico borderline partition astatine Border Field State Park connected August 17, 2025 successful Imperial Beach, California. (Photo by Kevin Carter/Getty Images)

Per the ailment seen by Fox News Digital, prosecutors said Barrera Nunes refused and attempted to propulsion toward enactment contempt having nary motor power.

The panga rotated successful the dense surf and overturned. According to the complaint, Barrera Nunes was the 2nd idiosyncratic to scope the formation and made nary effort to assistance his passengers.

One subsister reportedly told patrol agents helium had been trapped wrong the submerged compartment but recovered a pouch of aerial that allowed him to respire until agents flipped the vas upright.

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Another antheral said helium reluctantly accompanied his granddaughter connected the journey.

Before the capsizing, helium said, the skipper ordered everyone to leap overboard, but arsenic the vessel rolled, helium managed to propulsion his granddaughter escaped but became trapped himself, suffering a terrible limb wounded from a portion of metallic earlier yet being rescued.

Fox News Digital has reached retired to The Department of Justice for further comment.