Three Separate Vehicle Pursuits and a Vehicle Stop leads to 17 Migrants Arrested

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

EDINBURG – (News Release) Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol (RGV) agents disrupted four migrant smuggling attempts resulting in 17 arrests.

On Feb 11, RGV agents working near Encino, Texas, attempted to initiate an immigration inspection on a Ford F150 truck. The driver failed to yield and led the agents on a vehicle pursuit. The truck drove through a ranch perimeter fence before the occupants bailed out of the vehicle. An Air National Guard helicopter responded to assist. Agents searched the surrounding area and apprehended five migrants. The migrants were transported to the station for further processing. The driver was not located.

On Feb 12, McAllen Border Patrol Station agents observed a maroon Buick Rendezvous attempt to pick up several subjects in a well-known smuggling area near Mission, Texas. Agents apprehended the driver, a Mexican national illegally present in the United States. A search of the immediate area resulted in the apprehension of three migrants present in the U.S. illegally.

Later in the day, RGV agents working near La Gloria, Texas attempted to perform an immigration inspection on a Ford F150 truck. The driver failed to yield and drove through a privately owned fence. The driver eventually came to a stop and attempted to abscond. A search of the area resulted in the apprehension of the driver, a national of Mexico.

Additionally, RGV agents responded to a request from the Palmview Police Department, involving a pursuit with a Nissan Maxima near Palmview, Texas, where several subjects had fled. RGV agents responded to the area and were able to apprehend seven subjects who were determined to be in the United States illegally. The nationals of Guatemala and Mexico were placed under arrest without incident.