By Cari Hachmann
Officials from 1st Marine Division worked alongside the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) to carry out the arrest of 16 U.S. Marines on Thursday morning during a Battalion formation at Camp Pendleton.
The 16 Marines were arrested for alleged involvement in various illegal activities ranging from human smuggling to drug-related offenses, according to officials.
Authorities gained information from a previous human smuggling investigation prior to the arrests.
Eight more Marines were taken aside to be questioned on their involvement in alleged drug offenses unrelated to the July 25 arrests.
None of the Marines arrested or detained for questioning served in support of the Southwest Border Support mission, officials said.
The 1st Marine Division and NCIS are continuing to investigate whether any other Marines were involved in the alleged illegal activities.
No other information was available at this time.