The defendants conspired to transport 191 Ecuadorian nationals into the United States illegally aboard a 54-foot fishing vessel. A U. S. Navy helicopter sighted the overcrowded vessel off the Guatemalan coast
and saw that it had no lights and flew no flag. A Coast Guard detachment found the passengers with little
food or water, and the defendants had left the vessel. The defendants were indicted in the United States
for conspiracy to induce aliens to illegally enter the United States, and attempting to bring unauthorized
aliens to the United States. (8 U. S.C. Section 1324). The statute does not mention jurisdiction. The
defendants argued that the statute did not apply extraterritorially. Does it? Why or why not? Please
explain.