The police have detained two groups of illegal immigrants that arrived late on Saturday.

The first group, consisting of 20 men and four women, was brought in by an AFM patrol boat after it intercepted their drifting boat.

The second group, of 25 men, is thought to have landed at Xlendi on a 20-foot fibre glass boat. The alarm was raised when a group of 22 was spotting by a police patrol in St Paul Street, Munxar at about 11.30 p.m. The men were taken to the police station of the tiny village while the search for more migrants continued. Another three were arrested two hours later.

The police found the boat abandonded off nearby Xlendi tower shortly after midnight. It was towed to the AFM Maritime Squadron base at Haywharf.

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