Eleven illegal aliens were found in a stash house in Eagle Pass and have been arrested. Border Patrol officials say there is evidence they had recently crossed the Rio Grande River.
Those apprehended included eight Mexican males, a woman from Honduras, and a couple from El Salvador. Some of these individuals had been apprehended and deported from the United States previously.
The captured migrants will all be charged with being illegally present in the U.S. and will face removal.
“Human smuggling is a profitable enterprise for the cartels,” Del Rio Sector Acting Chief Patrol Agent Matthew J. Hudak said in a written statement obtained by Breitbart Texas. “Border Patrol agents and law enforcement partners in Joint Targeting Teams search out such offenders. Our agency will continue to utilize a wide array of enforcement components to combat these trans-national criminal organizations at every level.”
U.S. Border Patrol agents working with law enforcement officials from the Maverick County Sheriff’s Office conducted an investigation into a house near downtown Eagle Pass. They suspected that the venue was being used to temporarily house illegal aliens that had been smuggled into the country.
Sheriff’s deputies went to the suspected smuggling haven and a man immediately took off running. After a short pursuit, the individuals were detained. Ten other suspected illegal aliens were found in the residence.
As reported by Breitbart Texas, human traffickers, or “coyotes,” as they sometimes are called, frequently house their human cargo in “deplorable” conditions. In one case, 56 people were warehoused in two dirty, very small apartments.
Moreover, the females that are smuggled are frequently, sexually assaulted or threatened along the way. The men are also beaten. Often, cartel-connected smugglers hold their cargo for ransom. Those smuggled can also be forced into forced labor or prostitution.
Smugglers also frequently engage in other crimes, like kidnapping, robbery, and drug smuggling. Human smugglers have a reputation for being “ruthless,” “dangerous” and a menace to local communities, as described by border patrol agents who deal with them on an almost daily basis.
U.S. Border Patrol agents assigned to the Joint Targeting team South in Eagle Pass discovered the stash house.
Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas. He is a founding member of the Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.