REVEALED: US border patrol arrested more than 1,000 African migrants trying to cross into the country from Mexico in the past two months
- CBP report shows large numbers of African migrants are arrested at US border
- Over 1,100 people from 19 African countries apprehended since May 30
- The arrests were made at the Del Rio border patrol sector in Texas
- There have been over 44,000 apprehensions of illegal immigrants at the Del Rio Sector so far this year
US border patrol officers have arrested more than 1,000 African migrants attempting to cross the border from Mexico in the past two months, according to a new report.
data from the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) shows that over 1,100 people from 19 African countries have been arrested illegally crossing the border into the United States since May 30.
The arrests were made at the Del Rio border patrol sector in Texas.
‘The apprehension of people from African countries illegally crossing our borders continues to increase,’ said Del Rio Sector Chief Patrol Agent Raul L. Ortiz.
A federal Mexican officer (left) issues instructions while African migrants outside a immigration center
African migrants wait to be admitted outside of Siglo XXI migration facility in Tapachula, Mexico
‘Our agents this year have encountered people from 51 countries other than Mexico including 19 countries from the continent of Africa.’
There have been over 44,000 apprehensions of illegal immigrants at the Del Rio Sector so far this year.
That’s already more than double the total number of arrests made last year.
The migrants are coming to America after flying across the Atlantic Ocean to South America and then embarking on an often harrowing overland journey.
While it is not always clear which path the migrants take to reach the US, it is understood that some travel from their home countries through Brazil, before travelling north through Colombia and Central America towards the US-Mexico border.
Many of the immigrants in Texas were from the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola.
Cameroonians have also been traveling up through Mexico and into the US in larger numbers and seeking asylum at ports of entry.
Also on the waiting list are Ethiopians, Eritreans, Mauritanians, Sudanese and Congolese.
It is understood the majority of those apprehended are in family units or single adults.
A migrant from Cameroon holds a baby outside the Siglo XXI migrant detention center in southern Mexico