State Partnership Program

Video by Lu Maheda

Group of 364 Central Americans Enters Near Ajo

U.S. Customs and Border Protection Office of Public Affairs - Visual Communications Division

April 16, 2019 | 2:04

TUCSON, Ariz. – U.S. Border Patrol agents from the Ajo Station encountered 364 migrants after they illegally entered the country and surrendered to agents west of Lukeville, Arizona this morning.

Camera operators with the Border Patrol spotted the multitude of people after multiple buses arrived south of the international border approximately 14 miles west of the Port of Lukeville. Border Patrol agents watched as the group exited the buses and walked under a vehicle barrier that delineates the international boundary.

The group, consisting of 364 individuals, mostly family units from Central America, was similar to the previous groups that have recently crossed the southwest border. Ajo Border Patrol agents quickly worked to determine if any members of the group needed medical attention, and then began to transport the group for processing. National Park Service employees from the Organ Pipe National Park assisted agents at the site of the crossing. Additional Border Patrol assets from around the Tucson sector were diverted to provide humanitarian, transportation, and processing assistance for the large group.

CBP is facing an alarming trend in in the rising volume of people illegally crossing our Southwest Border. The arriving flow is made up primarily of Central American families and unaccompanied children. This stark and increasing shift to more vulnerable populations, combined with the overwhelming numbers, and inadequate capacity to detain families and children has created a humanitarian and border security crisis. The increase in apprehensions is taxing the entire immigration system, especially the capabilities of ICE and CBP, creating an untenable situation for both CBP personnel and migrants.