US Coast Guard returns 117 Dominican boatpeople: EFE

Santo Domingo.- The US Coast Guard on Thursday returned 117 Dominican boatpeople intercepted Wednesday in a small boat on the high seas east of the Caribbean country headed to Puerto Rico, EFE reports.

In a statement the Coast Guard said the group was spotted on board an "extremely overloaded" boat around 20 nautical miles east of Samana Bay, near Dominican Republic. “The US Coast Guard San Juan Sector then sent a fast boat to the location of the sighting and proceeded to embark immigrants with no injuries reported during the operation.”

According to Coast Guard officials in the group figured 93 men and 24 women, repatriated at the port in La Romana.