Migrant apprehensions between entry points on the southern border of the United States fell 30% in April compared to the same month last yearannounced this Wednesday the Office of Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
In April 2024 Border Patrol agents detained 128,900 foreigners between ports of entry, 30% less than in April 2023.
The number of arrests last April represents 6% less than in March when 137,480 foreigners were detained.
“CBP continues to increase resources and personnel to affected sectors along the border to ensure the safe, expeditious and orderly processing of individuals to maximize expedited removals. “We have redoubled our efforts, in coordination with partners across the hemisphere and around the world, to disrupt criminal organizations and transportation networks that endanger vulnerable migrants while peddling and profiting from lies.”
“We have carried out the largest increase in deportations and disruptive activities against human trafficking networks in the last decade,” said Troy Miller, the acting director of CBP.
In that sense, he said that, as a result of this increased law enforcement, encounters on the southwest border have not increased, contrary to previous trends.
US authorities have attributed the reduction to the increase in resources allocated by President Joe Biden’s Administration to border security and the coalitions made with governments in the Hemisphere against traffickers of undocumented immigrants.
According to the data released, from May 12, 2023, when the health regulations known as Title 42, which allowed the immediate expulsion of migrants, stopped applying until April 30, 2024, the Department of Homeland Security ( DHS) has expelled 720,000 foreigners.
Most of those expelled crossed through the country’s southwest border. The figure exceeds the removals and returns of each fiscal year since 2011.
This Wednesday it was known that 670,674 irregular immigrants evaded Border Patrol agents and managed to enter the United States in fiscal year 2023according to a Fox News report.
However, Troy Miller acknowledged that “We are still experiencing challenges along the borders and the country’s immigration system is not adequately resourced to handle them, which is why we continue to call on Congress to take action to provide our staff with resources.” and additional tools.”
Additionally, to prevent loss of life, CBP initiated a Missing Migrant Program in 2017 that locates noncitizens reported missing, rescues people in distress, and reunites the remains of the deceased with their families in the border region.
In April, The U.S. Border Patrol conducted 411 rescues, bringing the fiscal year 2024 total to 3,096 rescues.
Finally, in April, CBP also announced an expanded multi-agency effort to target transnational criminals funneling fentanyl from Mexico into U.S. communities.
Among them, Operation Spike Plaza, which targets the cartels that facilitate the flow of lethal fentanyl, as well as its analogues, precursors and tools to manufacture drugs. The operation is designed to disrupt operations in the “plazas,” cartel territories located directly south of the United States that are natural logistical choke points within cartel operations.
“This is the next phase of CBP’s Strategy to Combat Fentanyl and Other Synthetic Drugs, an international and government-wide effort to anticipate, identify, mitigate and disrupt producers, suppliers and traffickers of illicit synthetic drugs,” he mentioned. the notice.
At the national level in April, cocaine seizures increased by 95% compared to March. To date, from fiscal year 2024 through the end of April, CBP has seized more than 11,400 pounds of fentanyl. CBP has captured more fentanyl nationwide between the start of fiscal year 2023 and April 30, 2024 than in the previous five fiscal years combined, and we continue to optimize our intelligence and field operations to prevent these deadly substances from reaching the American communities.
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