Six Bangladeshis Apprehended in 12 Hours at Texas Border

Laredo Sector Border Patrol agents continue to find illegal immigrants from Bangladesh who cross the border from Mexico. During a 12-hour period beginning on Saturday evening, six Bangladeshi nationals were apprehended in two separate incidents.

Agents assigned to the Laredo South Border Patrol Station came upon a group of four suspected illegal immigrants while patrolling near Masterson Road in Laredo, Texas, on Saturday. The agents conducted interviews as part of Laredo Sector line watch operations. The questioning revealed the four young men were Bangladeshi nationals, according to Laredo Sector Border Patrol officials.

The following morning, Laredo South Station agents carrying out line watch operations came upon another group of two suspected illegal immigrants walking near Oleander Street in Laredo. An interview with the subjects revealed the young men to also be Bangladeshi who were smuggled into the U.S., officials reported.

In an incident on October 29, Laredo South Station agents patrolling along the Rio Grande River rescued a group of Bangladeshi nationals as they attempted to cross the river, Breitbart News reported. Two of the migrants nearly drowned before agents were able to pull them into their boat.

During the month of October, the first month of the new fiscal year, Laredo Sector agents apprehended at least 75 Bangladeshi nationals. This represents an increase of more than 10 percent over October 2017.

During FY2018, which ended on September 30, Laredo Sector agents apprehended 668 Bangladeshi migrants — up nearly 270 percent over the previous year’s total. The sector led the nation in the apprehension of these migrants who paid up to $27,000 each to be moved into the U.S. by cartel-connected human smugglers.

“In Fiscal Year 2018, Laredo Sector Border Patrol experienced an unprecedented increase in the apprehension of nationals from the country of Bangladesh,” Laredo Sector Chief Patrol Agent Felix Chavez told Breitbart News earlier this month. “The almost 300% increase in arrests of Bangladeshi nationals over the previous fiscal year highlights the hard work and vigilance of the men and women of the U.S. Border Patrol. We will continue to work with our federal and international partners to share information to stop the flow of those who seek to unlawfully circumvent our nation’s immigration policies.”

Hundreds of miles of open river border in South and Central Texas make the area a prime human smuggling corridor for Mexican cartels.