Photos: Filthy Conditions of Migrant Stash Houses Found Along Southwest Border

Photos tweeted by U.S. Border Patrol officials this week show the filthy and dangerous conditions human smugglers force upon migrants. The photos show the conditions of stash houses discovered along the southwest border.

Laredo Sector Acting Chief Patrol Agent Carl Landrum tweeted images documenting the “unsanitary conditions” migrants face as cartel-connected human smugglers warehouse them.

In a separate incident, smugglers dangerously packed migrants in multiple tractor-trailers. These smuggling tactics leave the migrants locked inside the trailers with no means of escape in the event of a crash or abandonment.

In the El Paso Sector, Chief Patrol Agent Gloria Chavez tweeted photos of two houses in her sector. The photos again show no social distancing or any other COVID-prevention protocols.

Rio Grande Valley Sector Chief Patrol Agent Brian Hastings tweeted images from houses raided by agents and local law enforcement officers. The raids led to the arrests of 19 migrants from Central America and Mexico. Again, the photos show the crowded conditions and migrants not wearing personal protection equipment to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Further west, Tucson Sector Chief Patrol Agent John Modlin tweeted photos from a crash scene involving a fleeing human smuggler. The smuggler’s vehicle caught fire while the driver attempted to flee from the Interstate 19 immigration checkpoint. Border Patrol agents risked their lives to pull two migrants from the burning vehicle.