Border Patrol in Del Rio had two separate encounters with two five-year-old girls crossing from Mexico into Texas without an accompanying adult over a two-day period.
Border agents discovered the girls in the Del Rio sector of the southwest border, where border agents have encountered more than 160 unaccompanied migrant children between Feb. 4-11, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said in a Friday press release. Between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31, 2021, border agents in the Del Rio sector encountered 2, 280 unaccompanied minors, compared to 1,305 during the same time period the previous year.
One of the 5-year-old girls from Guatemala was discovered on Feb. 7, walking alone near Eagle Pass where she told CBP agents that she had crossed the Rio Grande river alone.
The other 5-year-old girl from Honduras was encountered on Feb. 9 along with three other unaccompanied children, two 16-year olds and a 14-year-old all from Mexico that had entered the Del Rio Port of Entry. Each child had crossed the Rio Grande within an hour of one another before being encountered.
President of the National Border Patrol Council in the Del Rio sector Jon Anfinsen said that agents continue to encounter children that have made the dangerous journey. Many of them have horrifying outcomes. He said the dangers of a child crossing alone could cost them their life.
“Border Patrol agents keep finding small children abandoned at the edge of the Rio Grande river, and we’re grateful that these two are safe,” Anfinsen said. “But there have been other children who were not so lucky. For years, agents have found children in the river after drowning while trying to cross, and it has to stop.”
“Unfortunately, the policies of this administration are only encouraging parents to send their children on the dangerous trek across the border,” he added. “Until the White House and Congress figure out how to stem the flow across the border and create an orderly process for those seeking asylum, current policies are only going to lead to more children tragically drowning.”
Unaccompanied children are brought to border patrol stations, where they are identified and receive health screenings, according to CBP. In Del Rio at the Uvalde Border Patrol Station, juvenile coordinators aid in the care and processing of the children. Once processing is complete, the juvenile coordinators support the transfer of the children to the Office of Refugee Resettlement and Health and Human Services.
CBP did not comment on whether there was an effort to contact or locate the two young girls’ parents.
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