14 Mexican Soldiers Detained by U.S. CBP After Incursion at Texas Border

A group of 14 Mexican soldiers riding in two vehicles crossed into Texas at an international port of entry. The incursion led to officers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection taking their weapons and temporarily placing them in handcuffs. One of the soldiers had a small amount of marijuana.

The incident took place early on Saturday morning when a group of soldiers on the Cordova -Americas International Port Bridge drove past the international border marker into El Paso, Texas, Mexico’s 24 Horas reported. As the soldiers got close to the checkpoints manned by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, officers detained them, took their weapons, and placed them in handcuffs.

CBP confirmed the incident in an email to Reuters, saying, “Just after midnight today CBP officers working at the Bridge of the America’s international crossing in El Paso noted two Mexican military vehicles crossing the boundary and entering the U.S.

Drivers line up at the Cordova-Americas international bridge in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua state, Mexico as Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents in El Paso, Texas, U.S. partially closed the lanes, delaying the crossing of vehicles on March 31, 2019. – President Donald Trump on Friday again accused Mexico of failing to curb the flow of migrants illegally entering the US, and threatened to close the border “next week” unless something changes. The security measure is due to the “humanitarian crisis” declared by CBP because it has processed 13 thousand 400 migrants detained by the Border Patrol.

According to the AP, the soldiers claimed to not have realized they had crossed the international boundary.  After several hours, U.S. authorities released the soldiers and returned their vehicles and weapons. One of the soldiers also faced a civil penalty after U.S. authorities found a small amount of marijuana on him.

CBP officials stated the 14 soldiers, their equipment, and vehicles were returned to Mexico before 5 a.m., Reuters reported.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.