CBP Releases 2019 Southwest Border Migration Statistics

Samuel Allegri
By Samuel Allegri
October 29, 2019US News
share

The Fiscal Year 2019 southwest border migration statistics were released by the CBP (U.S. Customs and Border Protection) during a press conference in El Paso, Texas.

The statistics show more than 1.1 million enforcements nationwide, largely due to illegal border crossings in the southwest area of the United States/Mexico border.

The enforcement actions this year have seen a 68 percent increase compared to 2018.

The CBP statement says that their personnel “apprehended 851,508 migrants between ports of entry, including a record-breaking 473,683 family units;  encountered a record 126,001 inadmissible individuals at ports of entry; and rescued more than 4,900 migrants.”

The CBP says that their record-breaking actions are in part due to the construction of 76 miles of new border wall, put in place in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

CBP also had numerous successes besides the southwest border hot-zone, they arrested 976 gang members and confiscated large quantities of illegal materials:

  • Nearly 101,000 pounds of cocaine (a 73 percent increase over Fiscal Year 2018);
  • Nearly 2,800 pounds of fentanyl (a 30 percent increase);
  • More than 83,000 pounds of methamphetamine (a 23 percent increase);
  • $75 million of illicit currency (a 7 percent increase); and
  • Almost 3,000 illicit weapons (a more than 150 percent increase).

CBP’s Air and Marine Operations also seized 285,000 additional pounds of cocaine.

The agency hired over 3,300 law enforcement personnel this year, presenting a 46 percent increase compared to the previous year.

Brand New Border Wall in Texas Now Under Construction

The Trump administration is continuing to fulfill its promise of building a wall along the southern border in order to stop illegal immigration, human trafficking, and drugs.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) told Fox on Oct. 25, that the construction of a new wall is undergoing along the area near the Rio Grande River in Texas.

CBP says that 75 miles that have already been put in place under the Trump administration, replacing ineffective fences or other barriers.

Mexican border wall
People work on the U.S./ Mexican border wall in El Paso, Texas, on Feb 12, 2019. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

The new wall is being built in a sector southeast of McAllen in Texas’s Rio Grande Valley, which has the largest illegal crossing numbers. CBP says that through August, more than 325,000 people have been caught in this sector.

Jonathan Hoffman, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman, updated reporters on border wall construction progress during a Sept. 19 press briefing during which he said that by the end of next year, the goal was to have completed 450 miles.

“Right now we’re at a pace of about a mile a day. And we’ll see that continue to go up,” Hoffman said.

“It’s going to be a few months but our goal is that by the end of next year, we will have completed over 100—450 miles of wall construction all told across the entire federal government,” he said.

ntd newsletter icon
Sign up for NTD Daily
What you need to know, summarized in one email.
Stay informed with accurate news you can trust.
By registering for the newsletter, you agree to the Privacy Policy.
Comments