Border Patrol Agents Stop 2 Human Smuggling Attempts

12082016 TCA Alien trunk load 1
Photo: U.S. Border Patrol

Two U.S. citizens and six illegal aliens are in jail after Border Patrol agents in southern Arizona stopped two separate human smuggling attempts.

Border Patrol agents assigned to the Sonita Station on December 7 observed a man approaching the Highway 83 inland checkpoint in a 2004 Kia Rio. The vehicle was driven by a U.S. citizen. Agents became suspicious and searched the vehicle. The search revealed four Mexican nationals stuffed like sardines into the locked trunk of the small sedan, according to information provided to Breitbart Texas by Tucson Sector Border Patrol Spokesman Rob Daniels. The alleged human smuggler was arrested along with the four Mexican nationals.

Human cargo being smuggled in the Tucson Sector. Photo: U.S. Border Patrol

Human cargo being smuggled in the Tucson Sector. Photo: U.S. Border Patrol

That same day, Border Patrol agents observed a woman approaching the inland checkpoint located near Tubac, Arizona. After a K-9 agent alerted to the possibility of something in the trunk of the vehicle, the agents searched her 2003 Hyundai sedan. The search revealed two Mexican nationals locked inside the vehicle. The woman was arrested and the two Mexican nationals were taken into custody.

The two alleged human smugglers, both U.S. citizens, have been arrested and face charges of human smuggling. Daniels stated the six Mexican nationals are being processed “in accordance with Tucson Sector guidelines.”

The actions by these smugglers show the callous nature of those who treat human beings like boxes of cargo. Even in the cooler temperatures of this time of year, heat inside the locked trunk can reach dangerous levels. Additionally, if the vehicle is involved in an accident from one of the frequent high-speed pursuits human smugglers engage in, or if the smuggler chooses to abandon the vehicle because of fear of capture, the illegal immigrants locked inside the vehicle have no means of escape and are at risk of serious injury or death.

Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas. He is a founding member of the Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.

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