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Suspected migrant landing investigated on Palm Beach after vessel comes ashore

5 life vests found abandoned on the beach, police say
Palm Beach police responded to a suspected migrant landing on Jan. 31, 2025.
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PALM BEACH, Fla. — Palm Beach police confirmed they responded to a suspected migrant landing early Friday morning.

Officials said they received a call about the incident at about 5:30 a.m. but believe the vessel had come ashore about three hours earlier.

WATCH BELOW: Suspected migrant landing investigated on Palm Beach

Suspected migrant landing investigated on Palm Beach

The boat — which had a sticker on it that said "Git R Done" — landed about 2 miles south of Mar-a-Lago near the Sloan's Curve condos. 

Police officers found five life vests abandoned on the beach.

At about noon, a WPTV News crew spotted the boat still on the shore.

Sloan Curve condo owner Mariana Shirvani said she was surprised when she first saw the boat.

"I was shocked," Shirvani said. "I thought maybe somebody had washed ashore."

"My guess is that it is illegals," added beachgoer Dennis Witrykush. "They jumped off the boat and split as fast as they could."

Witrykush spends his days building sandcastles on Palm Beach.

WPTV asked him if he was concerned that the landing happened a few miles south of Mar-a-Lago, which is now under heavy security in advance of Trump's weekend visit.

"No," Witrykush said. "It's happened many times and it's going to happen again."

"I've seen a lot of debris show up on the beach," Shirvani added, "but certainly not a boat."

Police said they turned over the investigation to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

That agency did not return WPTV's calls as we work to learn if federal agents have any leads on who came ashore.