Three Human Smuggling Attempts Yield 56 Illegal Migrants
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
EDINBURG (News Release) – Rio Grande Valley Sector (RGV) Border Patrol Agents and local authorities disrupt three human smuggling attempts.
RGV agents received information of a hotel in Alamo, Texas, being used to harbor migrants. Border Patrol, in coordination with the Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office, responded to the location and encountered 17 migrants illegally present in the United States within four rooms in the hotel. The subjects were taken into Border Patrol custody for processing.
Penitas Police Department requested assistance from McAllen Border Patrol Station agents when a Ford Expedition failed to yield. The vehicle eventually pulled over near Tom Gil Road and the driver fled on foot into the nearby neighborhood. Border Patrol agents arrived at the location and discovered nine subjects, including a 13 year old child, inside the vehicle. Agents on scene were able to determine that the nine subjects were illegally present in the United States and from the countries of Mexico, Guatemala, and El Salvador. The migrants were transported to a Border Patrol facility and processed accordingly. The driver was not located.
Additionally, Border Patrol agents discovered 30 migrants being harbored in a Rio Grande City, Texas, residence suspected of operating as a human smuggling stash house.