West
Crisis in California: Surge in migrant boat landings brings 'chaos' to seaside communities
SAN DIEGO – Conditions at Marine Street Beach were as beautiful as they get — crystal clear water, sunny blue skies. Perfect, except for the motorboat speeding toward Jack Enright.
Enright, a San Diego native and videographer who was out that morning taking pictures of the waves, swam out of the way and started recording as the small white boat carrying around eight people “flew up” onto the shore. Enright said he couldn’t remember if the driver even killed the engine.
“It was just chaos, honestly,” he told Fox News. “And everyone just jumped and started running.”
The group sprinted up a staircase to the street and disappeared into La Jolla. Enright had never seen it firsthand before, but knew he’d just witnessed a human smuggling operation, a near daily occurrence in the waters off California.
Suspected illegal immigrants ran a speedboat ashore at Marine Street Beach in La Jolla on Jan. 30, 2024. A few days prior, another boat landed on Windansea Beach, less than half a mile to the south. There, suspected migrants were caught on camera jumping into getaway vehicles. (Courtesy Jack Enright)
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People have long sneaked into the U.S. by way of the Pacific Ocean, but over the last three years, California has seen an “exponential increase in maritime smuggling,” according to Brandon Tucker, director of Customs and Border Protection’s Air and Marine Operations in San Diego.
In fiscal year 2020, federal, state and local law enforcement recorded 308 maritime smuggling events in the California area of responsibility, according to CBP. Last fiscal year, they recorded 736, a nearly 140% increase.
Air and Marine Operations uses planes equipped with radar and cameras to patrol above, looking for smugglers. Airborne agents are usually the first to find pangas, small fishing boats frequently used to smuggle migrants or drugs to the U.S., Tucker said. Then his team, as well as their Border Patrol and Coast Guard partners, can coordinate intercepting the boat at sea or on land.
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Tucker doesn’t fly as often as he used to, now that he’s director. But his team needed a pilot on March 27 and, within minutes of taking to the sky, radar detected a suspicious vessel. It was a panga, with what looked like more than a dozen migrants on board.
Border Patrol agents reached the beach just before the boat did. They apprehended at least 10 migrants, plus the driver of a suspected getaway car, Tucker said.
“Normally, that gets us some pretty good intel on the smuggling organization,” he said, adding that the drivers — often U.S. citizens — frequently take migrants to stash houses before they move into the nation’s interior.
Sometimes, CBP or the Coast Guard are able to stop them. Nearly 8,000 people have been apprehended while trying to enter the U.S. illegally through the Pacific Ocean, its coastlines or its inlets since 2020, data provided by CBP show.
Other times, they find empty boats on the shore. The migrant group on March 27 came ashore in Del Mar, at the exact same beach where, just one month before, Tucker had stumbled upon an abandoned panga while walking his puppy on his morning off.
“The safety aspects of maritime smuggling … keeps me up at night,” he said, thinking of the open-hulled pangas floating 15-20 miles off the coast in six-foot seas. “One wave over the bow and that vessel could go down.”
SAN DIEGO AREA SEES AN ‘EXPONENTIAL INCREASE IN MARITIME SMUGGLING’:
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“It can turn almost immediately from an interdiction into a search and rescue. So our guys have to be ready for anything,” he added.
Migrant drowning deaths off the coast of San Diego County spiked from 2020 through 2023, according to a University of California, San Diego study. There were 33 migrant drowning deaths reported in the four-year period, compared to just one in the previous four years. Researchers hypothesized the rise could be linked to the increase in border fence height from 17 feet to 30 feet, prompting more people to try to cross via water.
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“Smugglers have convinced migrants that the maritime environment is an easier route. It’s more of a sure thing,” Tucker said, adding that people with knee, hip or other mobility issues might prefer a boat. “And in fact, it’s not. … Ocean smuggling is so dangerous.”
Dangerous for migrants, and for air and maritime agents, he said. Because while the planes’ infrared cameras are strong, they can only show people sitting in the open. They can’t give agents any idea what’s inside a more enclosed boat, like a cuddy cabin or sport fishing boat, Tucker said.
When agents pull up next to the vessel, they could be helping a hypothermia patient or they could “be pulling guns on a drug smuggler,” he said. “When you’re in close quarters like that, it can be very dynamic and very dangerous.”
CBP’s Air and Marine Operations use radar and cameras to detect migrant vessels in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego. Crews in the air coordinate with the Coast Guard and land-based Border Patrol agents to interdict boats. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection)
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“The real enemy for me is that smuggler,” Tucker said. “It doesn’t matter to them if it’s a pound of cocaine, a pound of meth or a human — it’s just a commodity to them. It’s just money to them. And the callous nature of their operations put migrants’ lives at risk and put my agents’ lives at risk.”
Many landings happen on popular beaches near homes, so Tucker asked people to call police if they see a panga come ashore.
“Allow us to get out there and try to apprehend these people entering illegally,” he said. “But also start the cleanup effort for the panga and potential hazardous materials on board.”
Ramiro Vargas contributed to the accompanying video.
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New Mexico
‘West Wing’ actor Timothy Busfield accused of child sex abuse in New Mexico
New Mexico authorities have accused Emmy-winning actor Timothy Busfield, known for series “The West Wing” and “Thirtysomething,” of child sex abuse.
A judge on Friday issued an arrest warrant for the 68-year-old actor on two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and a single count of child abuse. The arrest warrant affidavit, reviewed by The Times on Sunday, accuses Busfield of inappropriately touching two child actors, who are brothers, during his tenure on the Fox crime drama “The Cleaning Lady.”
“The health and safety of our cast and crew is always our top priority, especially the safety of minors on our productions,” Fox and Warner Bros. Television said in a statement shared Sunday. “We take all allegations of misconduct very seriously and have systems in place to promptly and thoroughly investigate, and when needed, take appropriate action. … We are aware of the current charges against Mr. Busfield and have been and will continue to cooperate with law enforcement.”
Busfield, who was an actor, producer and director for “The Cleaning Lady,” allegedly sexually assaulted of one of the young actors multiple times during his tenure. According to the affidavit, one child actor said Busfield first touched his “‘private areas’” multiple times on set when he was 7 years old. The actor said that when he was 8 years old, Busfield touched him inappropriately again several times. He was “afraid to tell anyone because Tim was the Director, and he feared Tim would get mad at him,” the affidavit said.
The second child actor said that Busfield “started touching them for the first two years” of his time on “The Cleaning Lady,” which filmed in Albuquerque, according to the complaint. The investigator said both children said they did not speak out about their alleged encounters with Busfield out of fear or concern for him.
The actors’ mother, per the complaint, reported the alleged abuse to Child Protective Services in October 2025, claiming that Busfield sexually abused her children from November 2022 to spring 2024. Police began investigating the alleged abuse in November 2024 after receiving a request from a doctor at the University of New Mexico Hospital.
According to the affidavit, the investigation also included interviews with the children’s therapists and doctors. One of the child actors, who disclosed the alleged abuse by Busfield to his therapist, has issues with bed-wetting “along with other behavior issues,” was diagnosed with PTSD and anxiety and has suffered nightmares “about the director touching him,” according to the complaint.
The investigator also spoke to numerous cast and crew members of “The Cleaning Lady,” which was canceled in June after four seasons. The affidavit details the investigator’s conversations with production assistants, the studio teacher and Busfield.
Busfield, married to actor Melissa Gilbert, told the investigator that “Cleaning Lady” producer Warner Bros. Television notified him in the spring of 2025 of an investigation regarding complaints “about him from the boys.” When asked whether he had any physical contact with the two child actors, Busfield “said it was highly likely that he would have,” the complaint said. He suggested to the investigator that the boys’ mother might have sought “revenge” on the director for “not bringing her kids back for the final season,” according to the complaint.
Though Busfield confirmed the identities of the young actors to the investigator in his interview, he allegedly said later, “ ‘I don’t remember those boys’ ” and “ ‘I don’t remember overtly tickling the boys ever, but it wouldn’t be uncommon for me.’ ”
The complaint also details Warner Bros.’ investigation into Busfield’s alleged behavior. The studio started its investigation after receiving an anonymous tip in February 2025 from the SAG-AFTRA hotline regarding a December 2024 incident. Busfield allegedly entered the hair and makeup trailer and “kissed a minor male on the face as the minor was getting a haircut.” The complaint further alleged “there are pictures of Mr. Busfield, ‘tickling and caressing the head and body of minor boys.’ ”
Neither Fox or Warner Bros. immediately responded to a request for comment on Sunday, but a spokesperson for the latter told the New York Times it is “aware of the current charges against Mr. Busfield and have been and will continue to cooperate with law enforcement.”
Busfield received critical acclaim for his portrayal of Elliot Weston in the ABC drama “Thirtysomething” in the late 1980s and early ‘90s. He also appeared in “Field of Dreams,” “Little Big League,” “The Byrds of Paradise” and other titles. He is perhaps best known for his recurring role in “The West Wing” as Danny Concannon, a White House correspondent who strikes up a relationship with Press Secretary C.J. Clegg, played by Allison Janney.
In addition to television and film, Busfield is a stage actor and director. In 1991, Busfield and his brother Buck Busfield created the B Street Theatre, a nonprofit theater in Sacramento that first began as a touring theater group for children. He also pitched for baseball team the Sacramento Smokeys and was inducted into the Sacramento Baseball Hall of Fame in 2024.
Prior to the allegations from his time on “The Cleaning Lady,” Busfield was accused in 1994 of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old actor who appeared on “Little Big League.” He denied those claims and sued his accuser for defamation. The case ended in a settlement, with a judge ordering Busfield to pay the woman $150,000.
Oregon
Oregon outside linebacker Blake Purchase to enter transfer portal
Oregon is losing a second edge defender to transfer.
Blake Purchase will enter the transfer portal, he announced via X. He has two years of eligibility remaining.
“I want to start by thanking God for this journey and everything that has come with it,” Purchase told DenverSportsMedia.com. “Thank you to my family for the continued love and support they have given me. I’m forever grateful for these past three seasons at the University of Oregon. The lessons l’ve learned here will stay with me for a lifetime. Thank you to all the coaches who poured into me and helped me grow as both a person and a player. And to my teammates – the bonds we built are forever. You are my brothers for life.”
The 6-foot-3, 245-pound Purchase had 32 tackles (4.5 for loss) with two sacks, one interception and one pass breakup this season. His 352 snaps on defense ranked 14th for UO this season.
Purchase had two tackles while redshirting last season and five tackles as a true freshman in 2023.
A four-star recruit out of Cherry Creek (Colorado) High School, Purchase was the No. 294 overall prospect and No. 34 edge defender in the class of 2023 in the 247Sports Composite.
Purchase will be the sixteenth scholarship player to transfer from UO this offseason, joining defensive backs Jahlil Florence, Dakoda Fields, Solomon Davis, Sione Laulea, Kingston Lopa and Daylen Austin, receivers Justius Lowe and Kyler Kasper, quarterbacks Austin Novosad and Luke Moga, offensive lineman Lipe Moala and running backs Jay Harris, Makhi Hughes and Jayden Limar. Oregon has 79 projected scholarship players in 2026.
Utah
5 vehicles hit exercise equipment on I-15 near Arizona-Utah border
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — Five vehicles collided with a piece of exercise equipment on I-15 near the Arizona-Utah border on Friday, according to Beaver Dam/Littlefield Fire Department.
At around 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 9, fire personnel responded to an incident involving five vehicles on I-15 Southbound at Mile Marker 17. Crews arrived on scene to find “slightly used exercise equipment” in the middle of the road, officials said.
A total of 14 people were involved in the collisions, though only one was taken to the hospital, St. George Regional, as a result.
“Please drive defensively; Keep your eyes on the road,” a social media post from Beaver Dam/Littlefield Fire states.
No further information is available at this time.
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