Remains of 10-Year-Old Identified After California Migrant Boat Capsize

DNA testing has confirmed that human remains found on Torrey Pines State Beach belong to 10-year-old Mahi Brijeshkumar Patel, who was presumed dead after a panga boat carrying migrants capsized off the coast of Del Mar, California. The accident on May 5 also claimed the life of her 14-year-old brother, Prince Brijeshkumar Patel, and two Mexican nationals, Marcos Lozada-Juarez and Gorgonio Placido-Diaz, all of whom drowned. The parents of the siblings were rescued but the father remains in a coma. The boat, carrying about 16 people including the family and other suspected undocumented immigrants, overturned in heavy surf, prompting an extensive search that was suspended after more than eight hours. Authorities arrested five individuals linked to the human-smuggling operation, including those believed to have driven the vessel and transported migrants to a house in Chula Vista. The cause of death for Mahi Patel is still pending, while other victims were confirmed drowned by the Medical Examiner's Office.