Migrants found inside sewer in Downtown El Paso
Heriberto Perez
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — Videos on social media showed a group of migrants inside a sewer in El Paso’s storm drain system. The El Paso Police Department, along with Border Patrol El Paso Sector, found this group of migrants last Friday at the intersection of Oregon Street and San Antonio Avenue in Downtown El Paso.
According to Border Patrol spokesman Agent Claudio Herrera-Baeza, seven migrants were found; they were Mexican and Colombian nationals.
“It’s very well known that Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs) utilize these roads to get into the United States illegally,” said agent Herrera. “It endangers the lives of the illegal migrants as they come through the sewer systems.”
Along with the seven migrants found in the sewer, the alleged smuggler was also discovered. All seven were processed and placed into removal proceedings under Title 8 authority.
The smuggler is expected to be charged under Title 8, USC § 1324, which involves human smuggling charges.
“Police checked suspicious activity in a storm drain; no state charges were filed,” said the El Paso Police Department in a statement.
Agent Herrera added that the Confined Space Entry Team (CSET) regularly inspects El Paso’s sewer system using underground technology.
“It is extremely dangerous, we know that these criminal organizations endanger the lives of the illegal aliens through different smuggling schemes,” said agent Herrera. “One of them of course is entering the sewer system; there are so many things that can go wrong, especially during the rainy season, like right now.”
More updates will come in later newscasts.sts.