Exclusive Texas Border Ride-Along: Migrant Encounters and Cartel Smuggling

Exclusive Border Ride-Along

• 🎤 NewsNation's Ali Bradley was embedded with the Texas Department of Public Safety's Elite Rush team in the Rio Grand Valley.
• 🕵️ The team actively searched for individuals attempting to cross the border illegally, including those hiding in the brush.

Migrant Encounters and Smuggling Operations

• 👥 Within hours, the team intercepted two men; one believed to be a guide slipped back into Mexico, while the other was apprehended.
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Later, a group of four was found: two women from Colombia, one from Guatemala, and a 20-year-old Mexican national believed to be their guide.
• 💰 All three women wore cartel wristbands, indicating they paid approximately $5,000 each for their journey, a higher price than usual.

Border Sector Statistics and Public Safety Concerns

• 📊 Exclusive data from DHS sources reveals the Rio Grand Valley sector is the busiest along the border, with more crossings this month than any other.
• 📈 Encounters are already over 400 higher than last month's record low, with five days left in the count.
• ⚠️ Lieutenant Chris Oliverz of Texas DPS emphasizes that even a single "gotaway" poses a potential public safety risk, as they could be a suspected terrorist or gang member.
• 🔒 Operation Lone Star is highlighted as an ongoing effort to dedicate resources to border security.

Processing and Detention Policies

• 🚨 Over the weekend, 78 individuals were arrested in a coordinated state and federal operation.
• 🚫 The Trump administration reports releasing zero people into the country over the last three months.
• ⚖️ Instead of being processed and released, migrants are now being processed and detained for removal, a significant difference from previous policies.