Agents with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection found 71 illegal immigrants packed into a single house near the U.S.–Mexico border in Pharr, Texas.
In a news release from the agency on Feb. 24, agents disrupted what they described as a “human smuggling stash house operating in the Rio Grande Valley.”
When Border Patrol agents arrived on the scene, they found 71 migrants inside the stash house. They were tipped off by officers with the Pharr Police Department.
The illegal aliens, they said, were from Nicaragua, Guatemala, El Salvador, Mexico, and Honduras. Three children were found among the group.
“Even with the spread of the COVID-19 virus, human smugglers continue to try these brazen attempts with zero regard for the lives they endanger nor to the health of the citizens of our great nation,” the agency said. “The U.S. Border Patrol agents of the Rio Grande Valley Sector will continue to safeguard the nation and community against these criminal elements.”
This came as a judge in Texas ruled on Feb. 23 that President Joe Biden couldn’t enforce a pause on most deportations until further notice.
In April 2020, Trump issued Proclamation 10014 to suspend entry into the United States for 60 days to foreigners who didn’t have a valid immigrant visa or official travel document. The order also suspended new green cards that allowed for permanent residency to most foreigners looking to settle in the country.
The proclamation had several exceptions, including for foreigners entering the country on an immigrant visa as a health care professional to work on alleviating the outbreak caused by the CCP virus.
