US Border Patrol agents detained 69 migrants – including four unaccompanied minors – after being tipped off that they were hidden in El Paso’s storm drain system last week.
Agents in El Paso got a tip Wednesday about immigrants being smuggled into an area known as the Boone Storm Drain, east of the American Bridge, Customs and Border Protection said.
While investigating, the El Paso Confined Space Entry (CSET) discovered that a ditch near Interstate 10 had been used as an entrance, and high levels of chlorine were detected at the site.
Agents intercepted and detained 27 migrants before CSET found another illegal port of entry in the same area and detained an additional 43 migrants in a storm drain near Paisano Avenue.
A total of 69 immigrants from Guatemala, Mexico, Bolivia, Honduras and El Salvador were arrested, CBP said.
Four unaccompanied teenagers from Mexico and Guatemala were among those detained, the agency added.
US Border Patrol agents intercepted and arrested 69 migrants in a storm drain in the El Paso area last week. Courtesy of US Border Patrol)
Immigrants were also found in a storm drain near Laredo on January 23. Courtesy of the US Border Patrol
All immigrants were medically evaluated and then processed for removal under Title 8.
“El Paso Sector Border Patrol Agents continue to successfully disrupt dangerous human trafficking schemes and illegal operations of transnational criminal organizations (TCOs),” said El Paso Sector Acting Chief Agent Anthony Scott Good.
“Storm drain systems are dangerous and pose a serious risk not only to immigrants but to Border Patrol agents and our law enforcement partners,” he added.
“Due to this risk, the El Paso Sector will have serious consequences for individuals who exploit the El Paso Storm Drain system.”
The city’s storm drainage system “is large and complex, and immigrants often get lost or encounter chemicals, toxic gases, insects and poisonous animals as they try to enter (the United States),” CBP said.
The agency said the practice of TCO smuggling carries “many risks” that could lead to injury or death.
“The complex drainage pipe system that travels from the city of El Paso to the Rio Grande River can transport toxic and hazardous materials that can pose serious health risks,” CBP said.
“Migrants also face the possibility of suffocation or suffocation because some of these storm drains are only a few inches in diameter and pose a threat to migrants because they can be trapped with limited access to air.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
