Brazilian migrants paid $16,000 a person to be smuggled 10,000 miles around the world to the United States via Nassau and Freeport.
One migrant was caught on route from the Bahamas in a boat called ‘Got Crabs’ – which sparked a probe by the US Department of Homeland Security.
A smuggling ring was uncovered in which migrants were told to act like tourists as a cover story as they travelled 10,430 miles from Brazil through Europe and the Bahamas to Florida.
Juliana Rose Tome-Froes, 36, now faces up to 15 years in prison for her crimes, said the US Department of Justice. Her husband, Fabio Rodrigues Froes, 49, faces a 10-year jail stretch.
Tome-Froes and Froes pleaded guilty before US District Court Judge Federico A. Moreno in the Southern District of Florida to six counts and two counts, respectively, of bringing and attempting to bring aliens to the United States for commercial advantage and private financial gain.