People from Central American countries pay human smugglers an average of $7,000-$8,000 each to reach and get through the U.S.-Mexico border, and in some cases as much as $10,000, according to the country’s top border official.
“We’re looking at $5,000-$10,000, $7,000-$8,000 on average and increasing every year,” Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan said during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.
McAleenan, a senior Department of Homeland Security official, said transnational criminal organizations make $2.5 billion annually by moving people through the border. That figure is in addition to drug smuggling and other operations.
In November, the highest number of people since President Trump took office in January 2017 were caught illegally entering the U.S. from Mexico or were found unfit to enter through a port of entry. More than 62,000 people were counted by CBP.
McAleenan said that while single adult males used to make up the majority of that population a decade ago, families and children have spiked over the past five years.
Last month, 59 percent of all people who attempted to cross the border illegally were families or kids.
