US deportations to Mexico rise to start year
Mexican government data show that the U.S. deported 53,764 Mexicans in the first three months of the year, up 40 percent over the same quarter a year earlier. Deportations had fallen during President Donald Trump’s first year in office, but this year’s figures have now surpassed the total for the same period in 2016, the final year of Barack Obama’s administration.
Border deployment leads to arrest of 1,600 more illegal immigrants
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers have apprehended an additional 1,600 people attempting to illegally enter the country from Mexico since April 15 as a result of the deployment of National Guard troops to the southwest border, CBP and defense officials said Wednesday.
National Guard officials overseeing the border state deployments said troops helping monitor the international boundary have freed up more border agents to physically guard the border. The result has led to a surge in the amount of criminal activity agents have stopped.
The increased surveillance and communication between guardsmen and border officers also led to CBP intercepting an additional 451 people who were turned back before illegally entering the U.S.
Those numbers could tick up considerably if the 4,000 National Guard troops President Trump approved on April 4 are called on in a future request from CBP.
As of Wednesday, 775 troops have been deployed and are on the ground providing “direct support on the ground” in seven sectors assisting law enforcement officers.