BRACKETTVILLE, Texas – U.S. Border Patrol agents, assigned to the Brackettville Station, along with state and local officers, foiled a perilous human smuggling attempt, April 15.
Station for processing per CBP guidelines.
“Through courageous determination and close liaison with our state and local partners, our agents were able to defend our community from these dangerous criminals,” said Del Rio Sector Acting Chief Patrol Agent Doyle E. Amidon, Jr. “During these unprecedented times, smugglers continue to attempt to evade law enforcement with no regard for the safety of those being smuggled, innocent bystanders, or the possible spread of illness through illegal immigration.”
Brackettville Station agents attempted to perform a vehicle stop on a 2017 Dodge Charger on Ranch Road 693. The driver, a 29-year-old United States citizen, failed to yield to the agents’ emergency equipment and fled toward Del Rio. The car was successfully spiked, but continued toward Del Rio - a dangerously disabled vehicle. The vehicle pulled to the shoulder and five individuals absconded toward the brush, then continued toward Del Rio. Texas Department of Public Safety troopers attempted to spike the vehicle a second time, but the vehicle swerved and continued toward Loop 79 in Del Rio, where it finally slowed to a stop. The driver and passenger were placed under arrest. The subjects who fled the vehicle – four Ecuadorians and one Honduran - were apprehended by Border Patrol agents shortly after absconding.
All suspects were transported to the Brackettville Station for processing per CBP guidelines.
Chief Amidon would also like to take the opportunity to applaud local community leadership, as well as local citizens, for their efforts in slowing the spread of COVID-19. We continue to ask for the community’s support in identifying smuggling activities, as smuggling has the potential to be a difficult-to-detect outlier in the spread of communicable diseases.