At least eight migrants were found dead in the Rio Grande after dozens of migrants attempted a hazardous crossing near Eagle Pass, Texas, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol said Friday.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Mexican officials found the bodies Thursday while responding to a large group of people crossing the river following days of heavy rains that had resulted in particularly swift currents.
Officials recovered six bodies, while Mexican teams recovered two others, according to a statement by CBP.
The agency said U.S. crews rescued 37 others from the river and detained 16 more, while Mexican officials took 39 migrants into custody.
Officials on both sides of the border continue searching for any possible victims, the CBP said.
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CPD did not say what country or countries the migrants were from and did not provide any additional information on the rescue or search.
The Border Patrol’s Del Rio sector is fast becoming the busiest corridor for illegal crossings. Agents stopped migrants nearly 50,000 times in the sector in July, with Rio Grande Valley a distant second at about 35,000.
Also in the Rio Grande Valley Sector (RGV) Border Patrol agents arrested 21 gang members, two sex offenders, and three migrants previously convicted of robbery, battery, and evading arrest.
Corpus Christi Border Patrol Station agents took custody of a subject from Jackson County deputies after they conducted a traffic stop near Edna on September 1. The Mexican national Paisas gang member, determined to be in the U.S. illegally, had prior criminal history for evading arrest and detention with a vehicle in Hidalgo County and was sentenced to more than three years of incarceration.
On August 30, RGV agents apprehended eight migrants near La Gloria. Record checks on a Mexican national revealed he is a Sureno gang member with an extensive criminal history, including convictions for battery, and immigration offenses, and has been sentenced to more than four years of incarceration for his crimes.
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On August 29, Brownsville Border Patrol Station agents apprehended a Mexican migrant convicted and sentenced to two years incarnation in 2022 of indecency with a child sexual contact in Weslaco. That same day, Kingsville Border Patrol Station agents apprehended a Guatemalan national near Sarita. The migrant was turned over to Kenedy County Sheriff’s Office for an outstanding warrant in Houston for indecency with a child.
On August 28, Harlingen Border Patrol Station agents apprehended a Salvadoran 18th Street gang member with prior criminal history for aggravated homicide in her home country.
On August 27, Rio Grande City Border Patrol Station agents conducted record checks on a Salvadoran Tango Blast gang member, who was apprehended with a group of five migrants in Roma. Criminal history revealed he was convicted of aggravated robbery in Houston in 2014. The subject was sentenced to five years of incarceration.
Additionally, RGV agents apprehended 20 other gang members associated to Mara Salvatruca (MS-13) and 18th Street gangs.
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