A news report details the reporter's experience visiting the Rio Grande Valley border sector, focusing on the sophisticated smuggling operations of transnational criminal organizations and the joint efforts of federal and state law enforcement to secure the border.
Border Watchers, I'm back in Houston after spending three days in the Rio Grande Valley border sector. It was a jammed-pack newsgathering assignment where I made sure to cover as much as I could on the topics of immigration and border security . While in the RGV, I rode along with Border Patrol agents and joined their riverine crew along the river to see how transnational criminal organizations smuggle migrants into the United States. It really is a sophisticated organization.
The structure includes guides who often smuggle migrants in rafts and lookouts who watch on the Mexican side to alert smugglers when it's the best time to make the move. These smuggling operations use technology such as drones, phones, and GPS-monitors. They also rely on impressive forms of intel. The smugglers are familiar with border agent shift changes and use that intel to their advantage. Those on the Mexican side know how long it takes to get boats in and out the water and how long it takes agents to make it from one side of the river to the other. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE 'BORDER WATCH' NEWSLETTER I also got to see how securing the border in Texas is a joint operation between federal and state law enforcement. All along the border you can see how Governor Greg Abbott's Operation Lone Star plays a role. From Texas DPS troopers to the National Guard, these law enforcement agencies share intel and often communicate with each other during apprehensions. The National Guard's presence at the border is simply that: just presence. They cannot arrest illegal migrants. The RGV border sector is made up of several towns and counties. The largest, Hidalgo County, went through a political shift this election year. For the first time in more than 20 years, the county voted Republican. I was able to talk with voters who live yards away from the borde
Border Security Immigration Smuggling Transnational Criminal Organizations Operation Lone Star
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