Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents arrested two alleged human smugglers in possession of handguns near the Arizona border with Mexico.
Tucson Sector Chief Patrol Agent John R. Modlin tweeted photos from an incident at the interior immigration checkpoint near Amado, Arizona on Tuesday.
During the immigration inspection, agents found a migrant in the trunk of the vehicle. During a search of the vehicle, the agents found the hidden migrant and a Glock 9 mm pistol.
The agents arrested the driver, a U.S. citizen, and seized the handgun. Modlin did not reveal the nationality of the migrant.
Modlin also tweeted about a second incident that took place two days earlier. A Wilcox Station Border Patrol agent initiated a traffic stop. The agents identified the driver and a passenger as U.S. citizens. The agent also identified a Mexican citizen being smuggled.
The driver became combative during a search of the vehicle, Modlin stated. The search revealed another Glock 9 mm pistol hidden under the driver’s seat.
Both pistols were equipped with rail-mounted targeting lights.
Breitbart Texas has been reporting extensively on the rise of armed human smugglers and the dangers they present to Border Patrol agents and other law enforcement officers.
Three Points Station agents found another armed human smuggler on January 10. The driver had a Smith & Wesson pistol under the seat and was smuggling two migrants from Mexico.
A few days earlier, Texas Rangers began an investigation into the death of an alleged human smuggler. The man died after crashing into the brush following a police pursuit, Breitbart Texas reported. Police found a handgun in the vehicle.
Earlier this month, an armed human smuggler shot an El Paso Sector Border Patrol agent multiple times in the chest, Breitbart Texas reported. The shots struck the agent in the chest multiple times. His body armor saved his life and he was able to return fire, wounding the smuggler.
State and federal law enforcement sources in nearly every sector of the southwest border report increases in armed human smugglers. Officials say this raises concerns for officer safety.
San Diego Sector Chief Patrol Agent Aaron Heitke reports a 50 percent increase in the number of firearms seized by agents in his sector. During FY22, which ended on September 30, 2022, San Diego Sector agents seized more than 60 firearms.
“We never know who we’ll encounter as we patrol the border,” Heitke said in a written statement. “Our agents are the first line of defense against smugglers who have become more aggressive and brazen in their attempts to bring people and narcotics into our country.”
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 Face
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