U.S. Border Patrol recorded a decrease in encounters with migrants in April, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said in a news release on Wednesday.
In April, the Border Patrol recorded 128,900 encounters between ports of entry along the southwestern border. The figure was 30% lower than in April 2023 and 6% lower than in March.
“CBP continues to deploy resources and personnel to affected sectors along the border to ensure the safe, rapid and orderly processing of individuals and to maximize expedited removals,” Troy Miller, a senior official performing the commissioner's duties, said in a statement. a statement.
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A group of more than 100 migrants trying to enter the US illegally storm a border wall on March 21. Encounters with migrants at the southern border fell slightly in April, border officials said. (James Breeden for New York Post/Mega)
Despite the decline, separate figures from Fox News showed that there were 1.6 million known escapes between fiscal year 2021 and fiscal year 2023. In the decade from FY 2010 through FY 2020, authorities under former Presidents Obama and Trump recorded more than 1.4 million known escapes. outings.
Known escapees are illegal immigrants who are seen or detected via cameras, sensors, foundations, etc., but never apprehended.
“If a person is willing to put themselves in danger by crossing very remote, very dangerous conditions to evade capture, you have to ask yourself why. What makes them willing to take that risk?” Border Patrol Chief Jason Owens asked a House committee in May 2023.
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President Biden recently touted the decline in illegal border crossings. Border authorities said Wednesday that the number of encounters with migrants decreased in April. (Getty Images)
“That worries me. What also worries me is that I don't know who that person is,” he added. “I don't know where they come from. I don't know what their purpose is. I don't know what they brought with them. That unknown represents a risk, a threat. It is of great importance to everyone who wears this.” uniform.”
In April, CBP processed 41,400 people through appointments at ports of entry submitted through the CBP One app, authorities said. Since the app was introduced in January 2023, more than 591,000 people have scheduled appointments to present at ports of entry, CBP said.
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, which has been heavily criticized for the record number of migrants entering the US, has previously noted changes in the flow of migration in correspondence with Congress.
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“Before 2013, the majority of people who attempted to cross the border entered without being caught,” he said in a letter to the House Homeland Security Committee in January. “Under this administration, the estimated annual apprehension rate averaged 78%, the same average apprehension rate as under the previous administration.”
Adam Shaw and Bill Melugin of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
