This is disturbing.
In the wake of deadly migrant smuggling in Texas, Border Patrol agents discovered three migrants hiding inside a toolbox at a border checkpoint.
The discovery is the latest in months that have pointed to stricter protocols and more thorough inspections being a necessity along the border.
Gloria Chavez, El Paso’s Border Patrol Chief, noted that the “ruthless smuggler” had shoved — and locked — three grown men into the toolbox. Chavez emphasized the heat the migrants were being transported in,
The discovery of the Honduran migrants was made after agents — acting on an alert — carried out a second search on the black Chevrolet Silverado uncovering the three tightly packed migrants.
Assisted by a K-9 Unit, the agents were alerted to the back of the truck, which had New Mexico plates.
The truck driver, a U.S. Citizen, also informed agents that he had Marijuana in his possession and a handgun. Yet when agents questioned him about the contents of the toolbox, the driver said he didn’t have the key to open it. After prying it open, the agents made the startling discovery.
The driver, who has not been named, was arrested and charged with conspiracy to transport, with it remaining unclear what happened to the three migrants.
Thursday’s events highlighted how dangerous migrant smuggling is to those who participate in it.
The incident also comes on the heels of the deaths of 53 migrants in San Antonio, Texas, where immigrants were found in a tractor-trailer with no air conditioning in the sweltering heat.
