Crisis worsens: 178,622 attempted to cross US-Mexico border illegally in April, most in two decades

Federal law enforcement at the U.S.-Mexico border stopped 178,622 people trying to enter the country illegally in April, the highest amount in more than two decades.

The April total is up 3% from 172,331 in March, which was a 20-year high for the number of people who tried to get into the United States by sneaking over between land crossings or were denied entry at border checkpoints. Roughly 5,160 of the 178,622 people encountered were denied entry at a port of entry, while the remainder went across the border in unfenced areas.