LOS ANGELES – A group of nineteen Mexican migrants, including three minors, were found hiding in a drainage system on the border between California and Mexico, near San Diego, the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported this Wednesday.
The arrest occurred on the night of May 4, after the Border Patrol’s remote surveillance system detected suspicious activity near the drainage tunnels.
Immigration agents arrested sixteen adults and three minors who were traveling alone to try to enter the United States illegally.
The San Diego Sector Tunnel Team, on the California border, had to clear the drainage system and make sure no more people were hiding inside.
Justin De La Torre, chief of the San Diego Sector Border Patrol, said – in a statement – that these attempts are dangerous and “frequently” involve people who represent a threat to US public safety.
“Thanks to the vigilance of our agents and the effective use of surveillance technology, this group, which included convicted drug traffickers, was stopped before they could move further into our communities,” he said.
Officers at the Chula Vista station were alerted by the remote video surveillance system about suspicious activity near the drainage tunnels around 10 p.m.
Deported brothers reentered
Border authorities are referring to the arrest of Raudel Carrillo Padilla, 35, and Iván Carrillo-Padilla, 31, two Mexican brothers previously deported following their convictions in 2017 for possession, transportation and attempted sale of methamphetamine in California.
Those detained will be deported or prosecuted for trying to re-enter the country after being expelled.
The discovery occurred shortly before six immigrants lost their lives trying to enter the country in a freight car in Laredo (Texas). The bodies were found on May 10.
Immigrant rights advocates have warned that the Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign has forced immigrants to take greater risks to try to enter the United States.
