Five Failed Smuggling Attempts Foiled by RGV Agents
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
EDINBURG – (News Release) Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol (RGV) agents disrupted five migrant smuggling attempts resulting in 26 arrests.
On the morning of February 15th, RGV agents initiated a traffic stop on a grey Toyota Tundra, however, the driver failed to yield, and a pursuit ensued. The pursuit came to an end north of Edinburg, TX when the driver collided with a perimeter fence and continued driving onto the property. With the assistance of an air asset, five subjects were apprehended. The migrants are citizens of Honduras and El Salvador. The driver was not located.
Later that morning, RGV agents working on U.S. Highway 281 in Brooks County, Texas, attempted to initiate a vehicle stop on a black Ford F-150 to perform an immigration inspection on the occupants of the vehicle. The vehicle failed to yield and sped away, ultimately veering off the road and crashing into a telephone pole. Multiple subjects, including the driver, absconded from the disabled vehicle. Agents were able to apprehend four people within the immediate area. The driver was not located, and no injuries were reported. All individuals that were apprehended were illegally present in the United States.
Around the same time, Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) troopers requested assistance from RGV agents regarding a vehicle stop on a Chevrolet Tahoe near Roma, Texas. Agents determined three occupants were illegally present in the United States. DPS troopers took custody of the driver. Further investigation revealed that migrants were possibly being harbored within a nearby stash house. Agents, with assistance from the DPS troopers, responded to the residence and apprehended four more migrants illegally present in the United States. All migrants were taken into Border Patrol custody.
Later in the afternoon, RGV Border Patrol agents received information of a residence being utilized to harbor illegal migrants in Mission, Texas. Agents responded to the location and encountered seven adults who were determined to be in the United States illegally. The migrants were identified as nationals of Mexico.
On the morning of February 16th, RGV agents working near Linn, Texas, attempted to conduct an immigration inspection on the occupants of a Toyota Sequoia sport utility vehicle. The driver failed to yield to the agent’s marked service unit and a vehicle pursuit ensued. The driver drove into a fence causing damage before bailing out. A search of the area resulted in the apprehension of two noncitizens. The driver was not located.
