Over 80 illegal immigrants were reportedly discovered in the woods of McAllen, Texas. The group was staying in a “makeshift encampment” near a closed-down tennis club.
The illegals, many of whom slept on cardboard, were staying in camouflaged tents hidden by branches. At this point, it is unclear how long the individuals were on the location, but some allegedly told authorities they had been there for over one week with almost no food, according to KXAN-TV.
Alfredo Espinoza Rivera, one man who was apprehended at the camp site, told KXAN, “We ate one burrito per day…I’m scared to go back to my country. There’s a lot of crime and it’s hard to live there.”
Rivera came to the U.S. from El Salvador six weeks ago. He claimed that he paid a smuggler $7,000 to get him across the Mexican border, and eventually hoped to meet his father in Los Angeles.
Soon after the camp was busted, Border Patrol agents discovered an additional 132 illegal immigrants about eight miles away, in two buildings located in Alton, Texas, according to local reports.
Daniel Tirado, a spokesman for the Rio Grande Valley Border Patrol Sector, told local media outlets that no leaders or guards had yet been identified in the group of apprehended aliens.
During an interview with Breitbart Texas, Tirado said that Border Patrol often inadvertently rescues apprehended aliens.
“A lot of those individuals who are found or discovered, they are removed from the country,” Tirado said. “But they’re often actually being rescued because the stash house operators and smugglers often hold them against their will, abuse them, and rape the women.”
As Breitbart Texas reported in March, 115 individuals, including women and children, were discovered inside a Houston human stash house where they were being held against their will. Agents on the scene told Breitbart Texas that “a sea of people, some sitting on top of each other” was discovered inside a small home with only one bathroom. Windows on the house were boarded up and most of the doors had deadbolt locks. “A wooden paddle, a stungun, two shotguns and several types of ammunition were found inside the residence,” a criminal complaint said.
In that case, five individuals were changed with armed conspiracy to detain and threaten foreign nationals.
Follow Kristin Tate on Twitter @KristinBTate
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