Texas Border Business
EDINBURG, Texas – This weekend, U.S. Border Patrol agents from the Rio Grande Valley Sector (RGV) disrupted several alien smuggling cases.
Friday afternoon, RGV agents received information of a suspected stash house located in Rio Grande City, Texas. Agents, with the assistance of the Rio Grande City Police Department, apprehended five subjects kept inside the house. The smuggled subjects were from Guatemala, Ecuador, and Honduras.
Later that evening, agents assigned to the Javier Vega, Jr. Checkpoint near Saria, Texas, referred a semi-trailer to secondary inspection after a service K-9 alerted on the tractor. During the secondary inspection, agents encountered a total of four illegal aliens concealed within the sleeper area of the tractor. All four smuggled subjects were from Mexico.
A couple of hours later, RGV agents working along U.S. Highway 88 near San Manuel, Texas, attempted a traffic stop on a Ford F350. The driver refused to stop and a pursuit ensued. The pursuit came to an end when the driver drove through a fence. Several subjects were seen fleeing into the brush. Agents searched the vehicle and discovered six subjects concealed within a water tote on the bed of the truck. A search of the immediate area resulted in the apprehension of four more subjects. A total of 10 illegal aliens were arrested.
Saturday evening, RGV agents received information of a suspected stash house located in Roma, Texas. RGV agents requested the assistance of the Starr County Sheriff’s Office. As authorities arrived to the suspect location, they observed several individuals inside the house. A total of 13 illegal aliens were removed from the residence without incident.
Sunday evening, agents assigned to the Falfurrias Border Patrol Checkpoint referred a Ford Edge to secondary inspection after performing an immigration inspection on the occupants of the vehicle. The driver of the Ford Edge bypassed the secondary inspection area and fled the checkpoint at a high rate of speed. A pursuit immediately ensued. Border Patrol agents terminated their pursuit, yielding to other assisting agencies as the vehicle fled southbound.
The Ford Edge was observed by various law enforcement agencies driving across multiple counties until it arrived in Los Indios, Texas. The pursuit came to an end when the driver abruptly stopped near the Los Indios Port of Entry and absconded. The driver and another subject were seen swimming across the Rio Grande into Mexico. Inside the vehicle, authorities discovered a mother and her infant child both illegally present in the United States. A medical assessment on the mother and child was conducted by local EMS. No injuries were reported.
Two additional cases occurred over the weekend in which a total of 39 illegal aliens were arrested.
All subjects are being processed accordingly.
Even with the spread of the COVID-19 virus, human smugglers continue to try these brazen attempts with zero regard for the lives they endanger nor to the health of the citizens of our great nation. The U.S. Border Patrol agents of the Rio Grande Valley Sector will continue to safeguard the nation and community against these criminal elements.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation’s borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.
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