EL PASO, Texas – U.S. Border Patrol El Paso Sector is warning migrants not to listen to misinformation being circulated by transnational criminal organizations about entering the United States illegally between the ports of entry.
In recent weeks, the misinformation led migrants to believe that the international BSI 36 marker is a proper point of entry into United States. Rumors circulating on social media that areas between the ports of entry on the southwest border – BSI 36 in the El Paso Sector – are open to illegal migration are patently false.
Border Patrol has encountered continuous groups of migrants led by misinformation making illegal entry into the United States during the past two weeks.
Border Patrol Agents began to observe groups of migrants steadily arriving at the border area near Border Safety Initiative Marker (BSI) 36 just west Riverside High School on Cesar Chavez Border Highway. Migrants illegally crossed the border after cutting the concertina wire along the Rio Grande River or placing clothing or pieces of cardboard over the wire. The flow of migrants has been continuous since then and at one point the number of migrants staging at BSI 36 rose to approximately 150 people. This group was mostly composed of single adults and but also including families with children, mostly of Venezuelan origin.
“El Paso Sector continues to remain vigilant and enforcing consequences under U.S. immigration law,” said El Paso Sector Chief Patrol Agent Anthony “Scott” Good. “No one should believe the lies of transnational criminal organizations. These criminal organizations prey on vulnerable individuals for financial gain. The truth is that individuals and families put their lives in peril by crossing the border illegally.”
The U.S. Border Patrol emphasizes that crossing the border in between the ports of entry is illegal. Individuals and families who attempt to enter the United States without authorization, and who are unable to establish a legal basis to remain in the United States, will be removed and are subject to a minimum five-year bar on reentry as well as potential criminal prosecution for migrants with a criminal history.
All migrants encountered at BSI 36 or any other location in-between a port of entry are transported to a processing facility and processed under Title 8, which will place migrants who cross the border unlawfully into removal proceedings.
Migrants who cross between the ports of entry or who present themselves at a port of entry without making a CBP One™ appointment are subject to the Circumvention of Lawful Pathways rule. This rule presumes asylum ineligibility for those who fail to use lawful processes, with certain exceptions.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection welcomes assistance from the community. Citizens are encouraged to report suspicious activity to the U.S. Border Patrol while remaining anonymous by calling 1-800-635-2509.