Five separate groups of mostly family units surrendered to U.S. Border Patrol near Sasabe, Arizona, over a five hour period on the night of November 16, 2019.
The groups, the largest totaling 129 illegal immigrants, were comprised of citizens from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua and ranged in age from six months to 56 years old.
In October, 2019, Tucson Sector apprehended a total of 6,352 individuals. 2,968 of those were in family groups or were unaccompanied children who surrendered to agents.
The groups recently apprehended near Sasabe are consistent with current Tucson Sector trends. Groups of family units have shifted from entering west of Lukeville to now surrendering in the Sasabe area.
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents operate in a challenging environment that requires agents to work in both a humanitarian and law enforcement capacity countering the activity of human smugglers that are exploiting people along the border.
Human smugglers often use family unit groups as cover for other illicit smuggling activities.
