Large Migrant Groups Apprehensions, Vehicle Pursuits Continue in Texas near Border

Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol agents apprehended eight large groups of migrants in the past five days, sector officials tweeted. They also continue to encounter human smugglers who fail to stop and lead agents and police on dangerous pursuits.

Rio Grande Valley Sector Deputy Chief Patrol Agent Joel Martinez tweeted photos of two more large migrants groups being apprehended in Starr County, Texas. The apprehension of large groups mounted to eight in the past five days.

Border Patrol defines a large group as more than 100 migrants in a single apprehension. So far this fiscal year (October 1, 2020 through today) agents in this sector apprehended nearly 80 large groups.

Cartel-connected human smugglers utilize large groups to tie up Border Patrol agents and resources enabling them to move drugs and other high-value migrants across the border and into the U.S. interior. This often leads to high-speed pursuits as smugglers attempt to avoid apprehension.

Rio Grande Valley Sector Chief Patrol Agent Brian Hastings tweeted an example of this tactic on Tuesday when he reported a human smuggler that bailed out and left 11 migrants in a moving vehicle.

Agents patrolling U.S. Highway 281 near Linn, Texas, attempted to stop a black Nissan Titan. The driver of the truck failed to yield and led the agents on a pursuit, Border Patrol officials reported. The driver eventually slowed and bailed out of the truck a few miles south of the Falfurrias Border Patrol Checkpoint in Brooks County, leaving 11 migrants in the uncontrolled vehicle.

The truck eventually came to a stop as it rolled into a rancher’s fence. Several migrants then bailed out of the truck and attempted to flee into the brush. Agents eventually rounded up 11 migrants from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico, officials stated. Agents were unable to locate the driver.