TUCSON — The largest single group of migrant families and minors ever recorded in the Yuma area tunneled underneath a border fence and voluntarily turned themselves in to U.S. Border Patrol agents, according to Customs and Border Protection officials in Arizona. A total of 376 migrants, made up almost overwhelmingly of Guatemalan families and children seeking asylum, breached the U.S.-Mexico border just before noon on Monday, approximately 4 ½ miles east of the San Luis commercial port of entry. CBP officials disclosed details of the incident on Friday, releasing videos and photos showing the migrants walking along the U.S. side of the border fence and waiting in line for agents to process them. Agent Jose Garibay, spokesman for Border Patrol's Yuma Sector, said that migrants, with the help of smugglers, dug seven holes in the sandy soil underneath the bollard-style fence and the metal plates welded to the bottom of the … [Read more...] about Largest-ever group of migrant families tunnels under Yuma border fence
Border fence
Did construction of a border fence cut down on crime rates in El Paso?
AUSTIN — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Thursday told President Donald Trump that the border fence in El Paso helped drastically reduce the city's crime rate and shows why a wall along the nation's southern border would be effective. Paxton did not offer statistics to support his claim or specify which iteration of El Paso's border fence he was referring to, although he did reference border barriers erected under former President George W. Bush. "El Paso used to have one of the highest crime rates in America," Paxton said. "After that fence went up and separated Juarez, which still has an extremely high crime rate, the crime rates in El Paso now are some of the lowest in the country. So we know it works." We looked at the claim. Here's what we found: More: El Paso leaders say city is safe because of people, law enforcement not border fence Construction of a fence in El Paso Some form of barrier has existed between El Paso and Ciudad Juárez for … [Read more...] about Did construction of a border fence cut down on crime rates in El Paso?
El Paso leaders say city is safe because of people, law enforcement not border fence
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders drew backlash Tuesday after suggesting in a tweet that El Paso was one of America's safest cities because of a federally-funded border fence. El Paso leaders have long argued that the city is erroneously characterized as unsafe by state and federal officials who lack an understanding about the region. On Monday, Sanders' social media post thrust El Paso into the national spotlight for its reputation as a safe city, but attributed that safety to the border fencing that creates a physical barrier between the U.S. and Mexico. "Ask El Paso, Texas (now one of America's safest cities) across the border from Juárez, Mexico (one of the world's most dangerous) if a wall works,” Sanders wrote on Twitter Monday. She linked to an opinion piece published in the New York Post that was titled “This town is proof that Trump’s wall can work.” The piece, written by a conservative political … [Read more...] about El Paso leaders say city is safe because of people, law enforcement not border fence
Construction to start on seven gates on border fencing in South Texas
The $3.7 million project was approved by Congress last year and is not part of the larger effort by the Trump administration to build a wall along the Mexican border. AUSTIN — Construction is scheduled to begin Friday on seven gates in fencing along the border that separates the Rio Grande Valley from Mexico, federal authorities said Thursday. The $3.7 million project will be overseen by the Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The work will take place in Cameron County along the area's levee system. "Once installed, the gates will serve as a persistent impediment to smuggling organizations while still allowing river access for property owners, (law enforcement agents) and local emergency responders," the government said in a news release. "The RGV Sector remains an area of high illegal cross border activity." Last year, agents took more than 137,000 undocumented immigrants into custody and seized about hundreds of thousands of pounds of … [Read more...] about Construction to start on seven gates on border fencing in South Texas
US family stranded on south side of border fence
Story highlights US family feels locked out of their own country behind border fence Their home caught fire and the border fence hampered emergency crews from responding Brownsville, Texas (CNN)D'Ann Loop awoke just before dawn to the smell of smoke as flames spread through her ranch home. She and her husband, Ray, rousted their daughter out of bed, called 911 and fled outside with little more than the clothes they were wearing. They could hear the wail of a fire truck's siren and thought help was on its way. But the minutes ticked by. Soon, their house and barn were entirely engulfed in flames. The horses got out, but other pets -- six dogs, a cat, more than four-dozen baby chicks and a guinea pig -- were trapped inside. "We had a little miniature goat, he was on fire and he was running out of the structure screaming," said D'Ann, tearing up at the memory of the Jan. 11 ordeal. "We all stood in the yard and we had to listen to their cries, burning alive." By the time the … [Read more...] about US family stranded on south side of border fence