Border Patrol union officials say multiple Laredo Sector agents were injured after being assaulted by a group of eight suspects who had just crossed the border from Mexico on New Year’s Day.
“Early this morning, Laredo Sector Border Patrol agents were assaulted by numerous subjects who entered the country illegally near the Outlet Shoppes in Laredo, Texas,” National Border Patrol Council officials wrote in a statement Wednesday.
U.S. Border Patrol Agent Hector Garza, in his capacity as vice president of the National Border Patrol Council, told Breitbart Texas the agents were attacked by a group of eight potentially illegal aliens.
Union officials report that the agents suffered multiple injuries. Those injuries include broken bones and lacerations. Doctors admitted the agents to a Laredo-area hospital for treatment. The agents were later released and are home with their families, Garza said.
Union officials said the area of the alleged assault is identified as a priority location for border wall construction in 2020. The Laredo Sector currently has zero miles of physical border wall infrastructure. This area is well known as a human and drug smuggling corridor.
The suspects were taken into custody by other Border Patrol agents, Garza explained. Laredo Sector agents are frequently assaulted by illegal alien smugglers due to increasing pressure to move illicit cargo.
Union officials say they look forward to the alleged attackers being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas.
U.S. Border Patrol officials have not released any formal information about the reported incident.
Breitbart Texas reached out to U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Laredo Sector Border Patrol officials for additional information about the reported incident. A response was not immediately available.
Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for the Breitbart Texas-Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and Facebook.
Disclosure: Breitbart Texas sponsored the Green Line podcast for the NBPC in an effort to provide a platform for agents to inform the public about the realities on the border and what Border Patrol agents face. Director Brandon Darby received an award from the Laredo chapter of the NBPC for his work in helping to defend and bring a voice to Border Patrol agents. Breitbart News assisted in covering funeral costs for a slain Border Patrol agent previously. Darby and Breitbart senior management have directly stated and shown that helping to bring a voice to the expressed needs and interests of Border Patrol agents is a top priority–personally, individually and together through Breitbart News.