Border Patrol Agents Foil Human Smuggling Attempt with Help from Army Personnel, DPS
Eagle Pass, Texas – U.S. Border Patrol agents assigned to the Eagle Pass South Station arrested two human smugglers and five illegal aliens, Oct. 28.
“I commend our agents and supporting entities for their collaboration in apprehending these criminals,” said Del Rio Sector Chief Patrol Agent Raul L. Ortiz. “Due to the attentiveness of our U.S. Army soldiers who are deployed on our borders, these smugglers were apprehended and will face justice.”
Agents assigned to the Eagle Pass South Border Patrol checkpoint received information from Army personnel and DPS troopers regarding a suspicious vehicle on Highway 57 near FM 481. Agents located the vehicle, a 1998 Toyota Camry, and began to follow it. As agents were following in close proximity, the vehicle slowed to a stop on the side of the highway and one individual ran from the brush into the sedan. Agents quickly performed a vehicle stop on the sedan which resulted in a failed smuggling attempt. The male driver, a 61-year old Lawful Permanent Resident from Mexico, and the male passenger, a 35-year old Mexican national later identified as a foot guide, were arrested and transported to the Eagle Pass South Station for processing.
Activity related to this smuggling attempt continued at the station, when five illegal aliens who were apprehended earlier in the day revealed to agents that the two subjects were their smugglers and identifying one of them as their foot guide.
All illegal aliens arrested were adult males from Mexico and will be processed in accordance with U.S. Customs and Border Protection guidelines. The driver and passenger face prosecution for 8 USC § 1324 – alien smuggling, which carries a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison.
Since the beginning of Fiscal Year 2019, U.S. Army personnel have been involved in 33 apprehensions within Del Rio Sector.
In 2018, Army National Guard and U.S. Army personnel were deployed to the southern border to being Operation Guardian Support. This operation is focused on increasing situational awareness and enabling Border Patrol agents to perform their primary mission along the border against those engaged in the smuggling and trafficking of illegal aliens, narcotics, weapons, and other illicit activity.
