Border Patrol encounters significantly down in Rio Grande Valley Sector

McALLEN, Texas (Border Report ) — Border Patrol encounters with migrants in the Rio Grande Valley Sector in May were down 79% from the previous year, according to data released Thursday by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

That’s the biggest drop in migrant encounters from the previous year of any Border Patrol sector on the Southwest border.

CBP data shows that last May, the sector in South Texas had the highest number of migrants on the entire Southwest border — over 38,000 — illegally crossing in between U.S. ports of entry in anticipation of the lifting of Title 42 on May 12, 2023. Last month, there were 7,865 encounters. That’s down 10.7% from 8,811 encounters in April.

Encounters in the sector in May were down 57%, from 18,216, in December 2023, when migrant crossings across the Southwest border hit an all-time high, according to CBP data .

The Tucson Sector in western Arizona had the most encounters in May followed by the San Diego Sector.

In the RGV Sector, single adult migrants made up the majority of migrants encountered — over 3,500. But officials also found nearly 2,000 unaccompanied children on the South Texas border, CBP reports.

Overall, encounters on the Southwest border in May dropped 9% from April to 117,900 — that’s the third-lowest amount since President Joe Biden took office.

“CBP will continue to prioritize national security and disrupt criminal networks, while maximizing consequences for unlawful entry, including detention, prosecution, and removal under recently announced executive actions to further secure the border,” said Troy Miller, acting head of CBP.

CBP officials also said that preliminary data for the past two weeks have found that migrant encounters have dropped 25% since new asylum restrictions were announced by the administration on June 4 that greatly limit how and when migrants can apply for asylum.

The executive order issued by President Biden requires migrants to tell agents that they fear returning to their home countries or meet other strenuous circumstances to receive a credible fear interview and be considered for U.S. asylum. Otherwise, they face removal, detention or deportation.

CBP says over 775,000 individuals have been removed from the United States since Title 42 was lifted.

The agency says “migration flows are dynamic and CBP will continue surging personnel and resources to areas that need them.”

Under the new asylum rules, migrants must cross at legal U.S. ports of entry and schedule asylum interviews via the CPB One app.

There were over 44,500 individuals processed for asylum applications who scheduled CBP One app appointments in May, the agency says.

A total of 1,450 appointments across the entire Southwest border are available daily but migrant advocates say it’s like a lottery system with thousands vying online for the slots and that results in thousands waiting south of the border, many in dangerous conditions.

Andrea Rudnik with Team Brownsville, whose nonprofit organization helps migrants after they are legally released by the Department of Homeland Security at a Welcome Center in downtown Brownsville, Texas, told Border Report that they no longer are receiving migrants who cross the border without permission or without using the CBP One app for appointments.

“We are no longer getting folks from Ursula and from Donna. So we are only getting CBP One applicants, and also getting people from the detention centers,” Rudnik said.

She says they used to get migrants from the CBP Central Processing Center in McAllen, which is located on Ursula Avenue and commonly called “Ursula,” and from a sprawling temporary processing facility that CBP built in the town of Donna, Texas, located halfway between McAllen and Brownsville.

Border Report has reached out to RGV Border Patrol officials to ask why the change has occurred.

Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.

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