EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – More than 80 foreign nationals with criminal convictions or arrest warrants have been apprehended in the past seven weeks in the El Paso Sector of the Border Patrol.
They include drug traffickers, child predators, wife beaters and violent gang members. Two migrants recently encountered had gang ties and outstanding arrest warrants back in El Salvador. Another one from Mexico was wanted for homicide and returned to his country to face justice there.
“Many times, our agents encounter migrants entering illegally into the United States who were previously removed with past criminal convictions,” said El Paso Border Patrol Chief Agent Gloria I. Chavez. “Most of the time these migrants re-enter illegally and try to evade detection because they know they will face incarceration again if arrested by Border Patrol.”
Other offenders apprehended since October 1 include convicted burglars, drunk drivers and individuals previously found guilty of illegal possession of firearms and assault. Many are intercepted near the border wall, found in the desert or mountains, rescued from overcrowded rooms and, in some cases, caught in passenger or commercial vehicles stopped at highway checkpoints.
The El Paso Sector of the Border Patrol just saw its third-busiest fiscal year ever in terms of illegal immigration. Border Patrol officials tell Border Report the Sunland Park-Santa Teresa, New Mexico, area has become the most active portion of the sector, that they have seen the number of migrant stash houses proliferate, and that migrants typically try to evade arrest as opposed to turning themselves in.
“I’m grateful for the vigilance and commitment portrayed by our Border Patrol Agents in keeping our communities safe,” added Chavez.