Photos Show Deplorable Conditions of Stash Houses near Border in Texas

Photos released by Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol officials show the deplorable living conditions where human smugglers warehouse migrants in Texas. Smugglers pack the migrants into filthy conditions after moving them a short distance away from the Rio Grande border with Mexico.

Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol agents teamed up with state and local law enforcement officials late last week to interdict eight separate human smuggling incidents, according to information provided by RGV Border Patrol officials. The interdictions led to the arrest of nearly 100 people.

RGV agents teamed up with the Roma Police Department to investigate two human smuggling stash houses in Roma, Texas, on May 13. Agents found 17 migrants locked inside two houses, officials stated. The agents identified the migrants as foreign nationals from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Nicaragua — all illegally present in the United States.

Later that day, RGV agents teamed up with deputies from the Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office to investigate another human smuggling stash house in Edcouch, Texas. Inside, the agents found 11 migrants who came to the United States illegally from Mexico and Central America, officials reported. No human smuggling “caretaker” was identified in the raid.

During the night of May 13, agents patrolling the border near Armstrong, Texas, observed a Ford F-250 attempting to drop off a group of suspected “noncitizens,” officials stated. The driver of the truck failed to yield to Border Patrol agents leading to a vehicle pursuit.

The pursuit ended when the driver came to a stop and fled into the brush. A search of the area did not lead to an arrest of the fleeing human smuggler. Agents did apprehend two migrants at the original drop-off location.

Rio Grande City Station Border Patrol agents observed a suspicious vehicle driving toward the Rio Grande near La Rosita, Texas. The agents observed a group of people quickly entering the vehicle. The driver quickly drove away from the location. As agents approached, the driver turned the vehicle around and fled back to the Rio Grande. Agents later found the vehicle partially submerged in the border river. The agents observed 13 migrants swimming back to Mexico. Agents seized the vehicle.

Weslaco, Texas, police officers requested assistance from Border Patrol agents after identifying a possible stash house operation in a hotel. The agents identified the two people as being in the U.S. illegally. They transported the migrants to the Weslaco Station for processing.

Agents apprehended an additional 66 migrants in three other failed human smuggling attempts last week, officials stated.