State, federal agents find 145 migrants stuffed into 2 Texas border "stash houses"

(This article was written with the assistance of AI)

State & federal officers find migrants packed into two stash houses near El Paso.Photo byTexas Department of Public Safety via Lt. Chris Olivarez on Twitter

U.S. Border Patrol Agents from the Ysleta station discovered over 140 smuggled migrants in two separate stash houses this week in El Paso. The first group was found during the early hours of Sunday near North Loop Drive and North Zaragoza Road, where 51 migrants from Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala were discovered in good health. Two Mexican nationals were identified as caretakers of the residence and will face federal charges for their involvement in the smuggling scheme.

The second group was found around noon when Border Patrol and Texas DPS officers encountered 94 migrants from Guatemala, Mexico, and Ecuador in a stash house located near North Loop Drive and North Carolina Drive. Despite being housed in deplorable conditions, all migrants were found in good health.

So far in Fiscal Year 2023, El Paso Sector human smuggling interdiction teams have uncovered over 130 stash houses in the region with over 1,800 migrants. The use of stash houses is a common tactic among human smugglers to conceal migrants until they can be transported further into the country. AT this pace agents will top their stash house arrest record from last year (see tweet below).

El Paso Sector Chief Patrol Agent Anthony “Scott” Good praised the partnership between his office and the local community in identifying these smuggling schemes. He encourages citizens to report any suspicious activity that could help save lives.

“The citizens in our local El Paso community provide an important partnership to help us safeguard our city. We encourage anyone with information to report suspicious activity to our office. That one phone call could help save many lives,” - Anthony “Scott” Good, El Paso Sector Chief Patrol Agent.

This latest discovery is a reminder of the dangers that migrants face when trying to enter the United States illegally. The use of stash houses not only puts the lives of migrants at risk but also endangers the safety of local communities. The efforts of the Border Patrol agents in El Paso Sector demonstrate the importance of their work in intercepting and stopping human smuggling operations.

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