Border Patrol Agents Rescue 10 Stranded Migrants on River Island

Border Patrol agents in the Laredo Sector rescued 10 migrants abandoned by smugglers in the middle of the Rio Grande River.

Laredo Sector agents patrolling along the river separating the U.S. from Mexico came upon a group of illegal immigrants stranded on an island. The agents contacted a Border Patrol boat team to intervene, according to Laredo Sector Border Patrol officials.

Two Laredo Sector Marine Units responded to the call for assistance.

The agents found the 10 migrants on a small island in the middle of the Rio Grande River behind a Ready Mix facility located along Riverside Drive in Laredo. The area is a well-known area where smugglers routinely cross their “human cargo.”

The riverine agents rounded up the migrants and brought them to the riverbank where land-based agents took custody. The illegal immigrants told the agents that smugglers left them for several hours. The agents checked out the migrants and found them to all be in good health, officials stated.

An immigration investigation revealed that the migrants came to the U.S. from Mexico and Ecuador.

The agents transported the migrants to the Border Patrol station for processing on immigration violations.