Border Patrol agents assigned in El Centro, California and Yuma, Arizona have arrested several U.S. citizens on charges of human smuggling in recent weeks.
On August 24, two U.S. citizens were arrested at the Wellton Station Interstate 8 immigration checkpoint for attempting to smuggle two Mexican nationals.
A Border Patrol canine detected an odor coming from the suspects’ 2002 Ford Explorer. Agents searched the vehicle and found two male Mexican nationals hiding in the cargo area.
Agents arrested the driver, an 18-year-old female U.S. citizen from Victorville, California, and seized the vehicle. They released the 17-year-old female U.S. citizen passenger to a family member. They processed the Mexican nationals for violating U.S. immigration laws.
Operation Blazing Sands
On August 23, border patrol agents apprehended three U.S. citizens who attempted to smuggle immigrants into the United States.
The arrest was part of the ongoing joint operation between El Centro and Yuma Border Patrol sectors called “Operation Blazing Sands.”
