Afghan Migrant on Terrorist Watch List Apprehended at California Border

“On Wednesday, I received word from Border Patrol Officials that an Afghani on the terror watchlist was arrested at our Southern Border,” a statement from San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond’s office reported, according to CBS8 in San Diego. ‘This apprehension occurred after the individual crossed the border alongside a group of migrants near Otay Mesa.”

The county supervisor confirmed rumors that the Afghan migrant was found with a group of migrants who crossed the border on May 10 — one day before the end of Title 42. The number of migrant apprehensions surged during the two weeks leading up to the end of the Trump-era CDC migrant expulsion protocol.

CBS 8 contacted FBI officials in San Diego who refused to comment on the arrest. A source told the local CBS affiliate the FBI classified the information on the Afghan national.

Two days later, and shortly after the end of Title 42, Tucson Sector agents arrested five more migrants on the TSDB watch list, Breitbart Texas reported.

A source operating under the umbrellas of U.S. Customs and Border Protection told Breitbart the arrests of the foreign nationals who illegally crossed the border and attempted to avoid detection and apprehension occurred in separate incidents throughout the day and evening on Friday. Information regarding the demographics and nationalities of the arrested migrants was not available.

The number of migrants appearing in the TSDB skyrocketed under the Biden administration. During the four fiscal years of the Trump administration (FY 17 through FY 20) agents apprehended only 14 migrants appearing in the national security database. During FY 21, FY 22, and Year-to-Date FY 23 agents apprehended 196 known or suspected terrorists on the list, the CBP report states. These numbers do not include the six arrests last week.

In March, Breitbart Texas reported a statement from CBP regarding migrants on the TSDS list:

TSDS watchlisted individuals encountered by the U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) after entering the country without inspection may be detained and removed, to the extent possible under CBP policy, or turned over to another government agency for subsequent detention or law enforcement action, as appropriate.

The TSDS originated as the consolidated terrorist watchlist to house information on known or suspected terrorists (KSTs) but has evolved over the last decade to include additional individuals who represent a potential threat to the United States, including known affiliates of watchlisted individuals.