Human Smugglers Lead Federal Agents on Pursuit with Migrants Locked in Trunk

U.S. Border Patrol agents in Arizona arrested a human smuggler after the man led them on a miles-long pursuit with his “cargo” locked in the trunk of his car.

Agents assigned to the Tucson Sector attempted to stop a Hyundai sedan for an immigration check near the south-central Arizona border town of Sasabe. The driver of the vehicle sped away and led the agents on a pursuit that lasted more than 20 miles, according to information obtained by Breitbart Texas from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials.

Border Patrol agents utilized a helicopter from the CBP’s Air and Marine Operations (AMO) unit to safely monitor the fleeing vehicle. The helicopter aircrew observed that the vehicle entered the town of Arivaca, Arizona, and came to a stop. The aircrew directed in the ground agents to the location where they saw the driver and two passengers jump out of the Hyundai and attempt to escape.

Officials said the agents quickly apprehended the driver, a U.S. citizen, and the two people who fled with him. Agents returned to the vehicle and found two additional people locked inside the trunk with no means of escape.

Human smugglers frequently place illegal immigrants in danger by locking them inside the trunks of cars or the back end of box trucks and tractor-trailer rigs where they cannot get out if there is an accident of if the vehicle is abandoned. Illegal immigrants are frequently killed or injured in vehicle crashes or from heat exhaustion when they are locked inside these vehicles.

The agents arrested the driver and charged him with human smuggling. An investigation revealed the four people he was smuggling were all Honduran nationals. The migrants ranged in age from 22 to 38, officials reported. They will be processed for immigration violations and could face federal charges.