UPDATE: 16 of 18 Immigrants Caught off Dana Point Will Be Deported, 2 Face Smuggling Charges

Sixteen of the 18 undocumented immigrants apprehended off the coast of Dana Point are awaiting deportation, while two are expected to face charges of human smuggling, an U.S. Homeland Security official said.

The Coast Guard Cutter Haddock spotted the panga, a style of small fishing boat, about six miles off Dana Point.

A release from the Coast Guard said the people were dangerously packed into the small boat, especially with water temperatures at 59 degrees--Coast Guard officials first handed out life jackets to the 18 before taking them into custody.

Michael Jimenez of U.S. Customs and Border Protection said that the 15 men and three women—Mexican nationals ages 20 to 50—were taken into custody Tuesday morning.

From information obtained while interrogating the detainees, two of the men appeared to be the smugglers and the rest, passengers, Jimenez said. Those two will face charges of alien smuggling.

The rest of the detainees will undergo background checks and, if not wanted for serious crimes, returned to Mexico.