Search ends after capsizing of panga boat leads to death of teen boy; 10-year-old sister is missing

The U.S. Coast Guard has suspended its search after a panga boat overturned near Del Mar, while others are in custody facing charges.

Five people were arrested in the alleged human-smuggling attempt that killed three people, including a 14-year-old boy whose 10-year-old sister remains missing and is presumed dead, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The dead boy, Prince Patel, was said to be from India, while the other two who died, Marcos Lozada-Juarez, 18, and Gorgonio Placido-Diaz, 55, were Mexican nationals.

They were identified by the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office and in a criminal complaint filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court.

Officials said said eight of nine migrants missing from the boat had been located, except the girl, whose name was not released by authorities.

The search stopped late Monday, hours after the early-morning capsizing of the boat, which injured at least four others, USCG Petty Officer Hunter Schnabel said. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the children’s parents are among the injured.

Prosecutors say two of the five people who allegedly took part in the smuggling were arrested on the beach near the scene of Monday’s rescue.

Jesus Ivan Rodriguez-Leyva, 36, and Julio Cesar Zuniga-Luna, 30, both of Mexico, admitted driving the vessel and smuggling people into the United States, according to a probable cause statement attached to the complaint filed in San Diego federal court.

The other three defendants, Melissa Jennelle Cota, 33, Gustavo Lara, 32, and Sergio Rojas-Fregoso, 31, all of Mexico, were arrested Monday night.

A separate complaint filed against them states that an SUV was spotted near Torrey Pines State Beach and drove off, possibly after having picked up some of the survivors. That SUV was found Monday parked off Flower Street in Chula Vista.

Two other vehicles nearby were stopped by Border Patrol agents, leading to the arrests of Cota, Lara and Rojas-Fregoso, as well as the detention of the remaining undocumented migrants.

One told investigators that he planned to pay $10,000 to be smuggled into the United States, while another said he agreed to pay $13,000, the complaint states.

Petty Officer Chris Sappey said it isn’t known where the boat was coming from before it flipped shortly after sunrise about 35 miles north of the Mexico border. He described the vessel as a panga, which is a single or twin-engine open fishing boat commonly used by smugglers.

The capsizing was reported early Monday by survivors who sought help from local first responders, according to a news release from the U.S. Coast Guard.  

At approximately 6:30 a.m. Coast Guard Sector San Diego received the report of the overturned vessel from a local dispatch. Three people had been found dead and four more were located in need of medical attention, with injuries ranging from minor to serious. Schnabel said they were treated at a local hospital.

After interviewing the injured survivors, first responders, including local law enforcement and lifeguards, determined that approximately seven more people could not be accounted for. 

Coast Guard Sector San Diego watchstanders then directed the launch of air and sea assets to assist.

They included a San Air Station San Diego MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter, Air Station Sacramento C-27 Spartan aircraft, Station San Diego 45-foot response boat and the cutter Sea Otter.

In total, the search covered more than 520 square nautical miles, officials said.

Eighteen life jackets were later recovered on the beach.

The Associated Press and City News Service contributed to this report.

Updated 7:05 p.m. May 6, 2025