United States Border Patrol apprehended nearly 150 illegal immigrants who were hiding inside a tractor-trailer.
Agents in the Laredo Sector of the border found 149 illegal immigrants in the back of a tractor-trailer during a checkpoint stop on Interstate Highway 35 on April 16, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced on Monday.
None of the people in the sealed area of the vehicle were wearing personal protective equipment to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, the agency said.
There was an “increase in COVID-19 infections among details,” CBP noted, warning about “the transporting of large groups of people without PPE in close dangerous quarters.” The agency did not provide details about the number of previously reported cases or what the rise has been.
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The migrants came from Central American countries, including Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Venezuela, El Salvador, Peru, and Ecuador. The driver, a U.S. citizen, was arrested as well.
#USBP Laredo Sector Discover 149 Undocumented Individuals Inside a Tractor Trailer, more info: https://t.co/NRf2vziiyO @USBPChiefLRT #bordersecurity pic.twitter.com/B2JkdSOduT
— CBP South Texas (@CBPSouthTexas) April 20, 2021
The number of migrants coming to the southern border has rapidly ballooned in 2021, specifically under the Biden administration. At the beginning of President Joe Biden’s term, he stopped the construction on the border wall and reversed former President Donald Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” policy, leading Republicans to blame him for the surge, though defenders note that the influx started under Trump.
A number of tractor-trailers have been caught smuggling illegal immigrants into the country.
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Twenty people were discovered under the floorboards of a tractor-trailer at the Del Rio Sector of the border on April 12, while another 60 people were apprehended on March 30 when Border Patrol inspected two tractor-trailers. A total of 111 migrants found in three different trailers were taken into custody within a 24-hour period in early March.
More than 100,000 migrants were encountered at the border in February, and more than 172,000 were encountered in March. Government officials estimate that an unprecedented 117,000 migrant children are set to enter the U.S. by the end of 2021.
