MCALLEN, Texas–Congressman Louie Gohmert (R-TX) witnessed the capture of nearly fifty illegal immigrants during a visit to the Texas border crisis region. Breitbart Texas toured the Rio Grande River border area with the Congressman and observed the U.S. Border Patrol’s intake process and shot the exclusive photos embedded below of the capture of the women and children crossing the border.
As the sun began to set in South Texas, Gohmert met with agents of the border patrol just east of the Anzalduas International Bridge, near Mission, Texas. The agents had just captured twenty-seven of the illegal immigrants who had completed the long journey from their home countries of Honduras and Guatemala. Agents told the Congressman that nearly all of the captured women and children come from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.
During the tour of the river, the agents demonstrated the night vision equipment they use to help determine when people are about to cross the river. This particular area is a peninsula. There is only one way off the narrow peninsula and agents said the people crossing the river walk right into their hands. There is nowhere else for them to go.
It was clear these people were not trying to avoid detection and capture. Their journey was complete. Congressman Gohmert asked one of the mothers who had three small children with her, why she had made this long and dangerous trek. The interpreter translated her answer, “My friends told me if I came here my children would get a good education.”
She explained she spent about $5,000 for her and her three children to be brought to Texas by coyotes. They traversed Mexico by bus and were immediately taken from the bus station in Reynosa, Mexico, to the river where a “taxi driver” would take them across the river on a small raft. She indicated she was headed to meet up with her husband. He has been working in a restaurant in North Carolina for about four years.
Breitbart Texas witnessed an area on the peninsula where rafts and life jackets had been captured and destroyed. Earlier in the day, a Hidalgo County Precinct 3 deputy constable told Breitbart Texas, the people running these rafts across the river had recently begun using life jackets on the small children.
Throughout the night, Breitbart Texas and Congressman Gohmert witnessed the capture and processing of nearly fifty illegal immigrants. Not a single adult male was with the groups. Some of the children were as young as two or three years-old. Most were from Guatemala and a few were from Honduras.
Congressman Gohmert was clearly touched by witnessing the capture of these people. The children were scared and some were crying. After witnessing this, the Congressman gave the children some comfort by giving them some small candy bars. He said they were clearly hungry and grabbed them up immediately.
After the Congressman departed the area Breitbart Texas witnessed one final capture of illegal immigrants who had just crossed the border. This was out on a public road about a mile west of the previous capture locations. This was yet another group of seven women and children. The children ranged from age 2 up to 16. Five were from Guatemala and two were from Honduras.
Bob Price is a staff writer and a member of the original Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.
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