Feds foil attempt to smuggle 11 Chinese nationals across the border hidden in furniture

Immigration officials at the United States-Mexico border in California foiled an attempt to smuggle almost a dozen Chinese people into the United States over the weekend, federal authorities say.

The incident happened Saturday evening at the Ysidro Port of Entry in San Diego, according to a Customs and Border Protection news release. Agents stopped a 42-year-old male driving a moving truck and referred the truck for further inspection of the vehicle and its contents.

Inside the cargo area, the release continues, officers found 11 Chinese nationals hidden among various pieces of furniture. They even had to free some of them from a washing machine, dresser, and chest.

The driver was taken into custody to await criminal proceedings, and the Chinese nationals were placed on an immigration hold.

“CBP cannot stress enough the dangers of smuggling people,” said CBP director of field operations for San Diego Pete Flores in a statement. “These are human beings that smugglers subject to inhumane conditions that could have deadly consequences. Fortunately no one was seriously injured.”

The story comes just a month after immigration officials at the same port of entry found six Chinese nationals hidden behind the false wall of another moving truck.

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