An alleged human smuggler is in a Texas jail after he crashed into a tractor-trailer while reportedly attempting to avoid arrest.
“Of of our deputies observed a van dropping off a load of suspected undocumented migrants on U.S. Highway 281, south of the Falfurrias Border Patrol checkpoint, Sunday night.” Brooks County Sheriff Benny Martinez told Breitbart on Monday. “As our deputy pulled in behind the suspected human smuggler’s vehicle, he activated his lights in an attempt to conduct an investigation.”
Sheriff Martinez said the incident took place on U.S. Highway 281 in the northbound lanes approximately two crossover points south of the Border Patrol checkpoint. This is an area that is well known as a human smuggling drop-off location. Smugglers drop off the migrants and have them march around the Falfurrias Checkpoint in order to be picked up on the north side.
“When our deputy activated his lights, it apparently took the smuggler by surprise,” the sheriff told Breitbart. “He quickly pulled onto the highway. In his panic, he crashed into a tractor-trailer moving north in the left lane.”
Martinez said the driver and one of the migrants suffered minor injuries in the crash. They were treated and released by doctors at a regional hospital.
The sheriff said the smuggler had seven migrants in his vehicle, including the injured passenger. All were apprehended by Falfurrias Station Border Patrol agents.
A Texas DPS trooper arrested the alleged smuggler and he is now in the Brooks County jail awaiting state human smuggling charges.
“Vehicle pursuits are a near-daily occurrence here in Brooks [County],” the sheriff said. “These smugglers have no regard for the lives of those they are smuggling or the public who are endangered when they attempt to flee.”
On Friday, Rio Grande Valley Sector Chief Patrol Agent Brian Hastings tweeted photos of a fiery scene where a human smuggler’s vehicle burst into flames after being driven off the road north of the immigration checkpoint located approximately 80 miles north of the Texas-Mexico border.
Agents apprehended three migrants following the incident. Brooks County firefighters arrived and put out the fire before it spread onto a neighboring ranch. The incident took place on the same highway as the crash above, but north of the checkpoint. This indicates the smuggler had picked up his “human cargo” after they completed their journey around the checkpoint.
Less than one year ago, a human smuggler crashed a van into a light pole while attempting to turn too quickly in an overloaded vehicle. Ten people died in the crash and 20 others were injured, Breitbart Texas reported.
“This is yet another example of the consequences of our out-of-control border under the current administration’s policies,” Sheriff Martinez told Breitbart at the time. “While this incident did not involve a police pursuit, our deputies, Texas DPS troopers, and Border Patrol agents are frequently forced to engage in pursuits where human smugglers recklessly flee from apprehension.”
More than 120 migrants were found dead in Brooks County last year, Martinez said. At least 15 more have been found dead during the first two months of this year.
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.