Taiwan Quick Take: Filial illegals caught

Coast guard officers yesterday detained 13 illegal Chinese immigrants aboard a local fishing vessel at the port of Shenao (深澳), Taipei County, just east of Keelung, as they were trying to head back to China. Acting on a tip that illegal immigrants were taking fishing boats to return to China with the assistance of human traffickers, coast guard agents detected the group inside the cabin of a vessel early yesterday morning. Some of the 13 men and women -- dressed in designer clothes, up-market sports shoes and carrying numerous pieces of luggage -- told officers that they wanted to go home because "Mother's Day is around the corner." The Chinese nationals, along with the ship's captain and five crew members, were taken to Keelung Prosecutors' Office for further questioning.