20 suspected Haitian migrants found dead on boat in Brazil

BRAGANCA

Twenty suspected Haitian migrants have been found dead in a boat in northern Brazil, their bodies in an advanced state of decomposition and showing signs of dehydration and hunger, police said on April 13.

Fishermen alerted the authorities after finding the boat near the town of Braganca, which sits on Brazil's northern coast in the state of Para, a federal police spokesman told AFP.

"According to civil police and forensics experts, there were 20 bodies. The federal police chief for Braganca, Alexandre Calvinho, said they were believed to be Haitian refugees," police said in a statement.

"However, further investigation is needed to confirm the cause of death and the victims' identities."

Forensics experts will also have to confirm the exact number of victims, it said.

The victims "are believed to have died of hunger and dehydration, but further analysis is required. The investigation is ongoing," police said.

The federal prosecutors' office said in a statement it had opened both criminal and civil investigations on the case.

Local media reports said fishermen found the small boat early April 13 at a remote Atlantic Ocean beach between the towns of Braganca and Quatipuru.

The site is around 3,500 kilometers from Haiti.