El Centro Sector Border Patrol agents found a group of eight migrants locked inside a white delivery van near Niland, Arizona, officials stated. The driver of the van with fake FedEx markings initially represented himself as a delivery man.
El Centro Sector agents patrolling Highway 111 on October 14 observed a while panel van marked with FedEx logos near the immigration checkpoint. Officials stated the driver behaved with signs consistent with that of human smuggling activities.
Agents stopped the van and approached the driver for an interview. The driver reportedly claimed to be a deliveryman, the report states. The agents obtained the driver’s consent to search the cargo area where they found eight people attempting to conceal themselves.
The driver, 37, now faces federal felony charges related to human smuggling.
The agents identified the eight migrants as Mexican nationals not legally present in the U.S. The agents transported the eight migrants to the El Centro Sector processing center. They seized the van used in the failed smuggling attempt.
“Our agents will continue to put pressure on transnational criminal organizations who believe that their illicit activities will not have consequences,” El Centro Sector Chief Patrol Agent Gregory K. Bovino said in a written statement. “This is an example of how smugglers view the humans they smuggle for profit – as if they were nothing more than cargo.”
Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior news contributor for the Breitbart Texas-Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston’s What’s Your Point? Sunday-morning talk show. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and Facebook.