Border Apprehensions Continued at Historic Pace in April

What’s the story?

• U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released its operational statistics for the month of April on Tuesday, which revealed it was the second straight month in which apprehensions of people attempting to enter the country illegally were at the highest level in over two decades.
• In April, CBP apprehended 178,622 people attempting to enter the country without authorization, a 3% increase over the 173,348 encountered in March.
• The number of unaccompanied minors apprehended by CBP declined month-over-month from an all-time high of 18,890 in March to 17,171 in April, which means last month saw the second-most monthly apprehensions of unaccompanied minors.
• The CBP chart below compares the total number of monthly border apprehensions from the last three fiscal years to the current year, which has been higher than the preceding years in each of the seven months of the fiscal year to date:

• Acting CBP Commissioner Troy Miller offered the following statement about the situation at the border and the efforts of CBP personnel:

“CBP continues to see a large influx of illegal migration along the Southwest Border. In order to disrupt criminal organizations that have little regard for human life, CBP is leading the way alongside external law enforcement partners through Operational Sentinel. Day after day, CBP rescues migrants abandoned in harsh terrain, left for dead with no food or water. CBP is committed to enhancing the security of the U.S. border and helping save the lives of vulnerable migrants.”

— Eric Revell

(Photo Credit: U.S. Customs and Border Protection - Ozzy Trevino via Flickr / Public Domain)