Human Smuggler Sends 6 to Hospital After High-Speed Chase

A suspected human smuggler attempting to flee from local police sent six people to the hospital following a high-speed crash. The driver of a car not involved in the chase was airlifted with critical injuries.

Border Patrol agents assigned to the McAllen Station in the Rio Grande Valley Sector received a call from the Penitas, Texas, Police Department requesting assistance in a high-speed pursuit involving a black Ford Mustang. Border Patrol agents and a National Guard helicopter aircrew assigned to Operation Guardian Support responded to assist the local police department, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials.

During the pursuit, the driver of the Ford Mustang crashed into a white Chevy Malibu carrying two passengers. The crash caused serious injuries to the innocent U.S. citizen driving the Malibu, officials stated. Border Patrol agents certified as Emergency Medical Technicians arrived on the scene of the crash and began to administer assistance to those injured in the crash.

Officials dispatched an air ambulance to take the Malibu’s driver to a hospital after agents determined his injuries to be critical. The helicopter transported the driver to a local hospital for treatment.

Ambulances transported the remaining passengers of both vehicles and the Mustang’s driver, a 20-year-old U.S. citizen, to hospitals for treatment to the injuries they sustained in the crash.

Police officers with the Sullivan City Police Department arrested the driver of the Mustang after an investigation revealed the U.S. citizen appeared to be smuggling three illegal immigrants. Officials said that human smuggling appeared to be the reason the Mustang’s driver fled from local police officers.

CBP officials said the crash and injury to the innocent victims illustrates the callous disregard for human life exhibited by human smugglers.