‘Over 1,000’ drone incursions per month at southern border — smugglers are ‘trying to find gaps’: Air Force general



Air Force General Gregory Guillot told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday that there are “over 1,000” drone incursions per month at the southern border, the New York Post reported.

Guillot, the commander of North American Defense Command, called the uptick in drone encounters “alarming.”

“The number of incursions was something that was alarming to me as I took command last month,” he told senators on Thursday.

When asked how many drones are flying into United States airspace near the southern border, he replied that no one knows precisely.

“I don’t know the actual number. I don’t think anybody does, but it’s in the thousands,” Guillot continued.

He claimed that the United States Customs and Border Protection would “put the number at thousands” over approximately a one-month period.

“Probably have over 1,000 a month,” he declared.

Senators asked Guillot whether the incursions over the southern border presented a defense threat, and he responded, “They alarm me.”

“I haven’t seen any of them manifest in a threat to the level of national defense, but I see the potential only growing,” he said.

According to Guillot, most of the unmanned drones flying near the southern border are operated by “spotters” who are “trying to find gaps” to sneak past law enforcement agents.

“There’s a smaller number [of drones] that are probably moving narcotics across the border,” Guillot remarked.

He also noted that some of the drone activity at the southern border is the federal government attempting to monitor illegal activity.

During the hearing, Guillot addressed the influx of Chinese nationals illegally crossing into the United States, stating that it is “a big concern” of his.

“What concerns me most about specifically the Chinese migrants is, one, that they’re so centralized and in one location across on the border. And, two, is — while many may be political refugees and other explanations — the ability for counter intelligence to hide in plain sight in those numbers,” Guillot told the committee.

He also explained that he is concerned that the waves of migrants coming over the border “seem to be coordinated and command and controlled using social media.” Mexican cartels are using social media to “drive the migrants to areas where [Border Patrol agents] might not be,” he added.

CBP officials have noted that the cartels are using small drones to track the locations of Border Patrol agents in an effort to sneak their smuggling operations past law enforcement, the Post reported.

Last year, Rio Grande Valley Sector Chief Patrol Agent Gloria Chavez informed the House Oversight Committee that more than 10,000 drone incursions and 25,000 drone sightings were reported over one year.

“We have made great progress in countering the threat of small, unmanned platforms,” Chavez stated. “However, the adversaries have 17 times the number of drones, twice the amount of flight hours, and unlimited funding to grow their operations.”

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Crisis Of Enslaved Migrant Kids Should Disqualify Biden From A Second Term

Biden’s first term has shown he is uninterested in and incapable of fixing our broken immigration system.

Border Patrol video shows smugglers dropping 3-year-old and 5-year-old girls from 14-foot wall



The U.S. Border Patrol released disturbing video footage Wednesday showing smugglers dropping a 3-year-old toddler and her 5-year-old sister from a 14-foot border wall, leaving the little girls exposed in the desert as they fled back into Mexico.

What are the details?

USBP El Paso Sector Chief Patrol Agent Gloria Chavez released the clip on Twitter, saying, "Smugglers, under cover of night, scaled a 14 ft. border barrier and cruelly dropped 2 young children in the middle of the New Mexico desert. The girls, ages 3 & 5, were left miles from the nearest residence. Thank you STN Agents for rescuing these children!"

Smugglers, under cover of night, scaled a 14 ft. border barrier and cruelly dropped 2 young children in the middle… https://t.co/puCa3MoEvr
— Gloria I. Chavez (@Gloria I. Chavez)1617217714.0

In the video, a suspect can be seen hoisting the smaller child over the wall and lowering her down before letting go. The toddler lays still on the ground for a few moments after her fall, before bringing herself to her feet as her 5-year-old sister lands next to her.

The individual on the wall then tosses an object on the ground next to the tikes, who appear to be staring upward from where they were dropped as the two suspects can be seen running back through trails on the Mexican side of the border.

In a statement following the video, Chavez said:

"I'm appalled by the way these smugglers viciously dropped innocent children form a 14-foot border barrier last night. If not for the vigilance of our Agents using mobile technology, these two tender-aged siblings would have been exposed to the harsh elements of desert environment for hours. We are currently working with our law enforcement partners in Mexico and attempting to identify these ruthless human smugglers so as to hold them accountable to the fullest extent of the law."

Fox News reported that the number of unaccompanied children arriving the U.S. at the southern border "has been rising for weeks," as the the Biden administration struggles to "deal with the influx."

According to the Associated Press, more than 17,000 migrant children were in U.S. custody as of Monday.

Anything else?

The news of the two abandoned little girls comes just a day after the Texas Department of Public Safety reported that a 6-month-old baby girl was thrown out of a raft by smugglers while crossing the Rio Grande River earlier this month.

Border Patrol agents and the Texas Rangers were able to save the infant and her mother, whose leg had been broken by smugglers while in Mexico.

6-month-old baby girl rescued after being thrown from raft into Rio Grande by smugglers



A six-month-old baby girl was saved by Texas Rangers and U.S. Border Patrol agents earlier this month, who recovered her after she was thrown from a raft by smugglers while being taken across the Rio Grande River into the U.S.

What are the details?

The Texas Department of Public Safety reported in a social media post Tuesday that Texas Rangers out of its South Texas Special Operations group assisted Border Patrol on Mar. 16 "with a 6mo female child who had been thrown out of a raft and into the Rio Grande River by smugglers."

The agency added that "the child's mother had been assaulted by smugglers in Mexico resulting in a broken leg."

KVEO-TV reported that according to Texas DPS Lt. Christopher Olivarez, "the mother and child had been waiting in Mexico since December to cross into the U.S.," and "the mother paid smugglers $3,500 to cross the Rio Grande River into the U.S."

The outlet added, "The family of two crossed the river in rafts along with 67 adults and 150 children in Roma, Texas."

The mother and child are now both in U.S. Border Patrol Custody, along with thousands of other migrants who have been coming in waves into the U.S. illegally since President Joe Biden took office.

Roughly an hour and 20 minutes from Roma is the U.S. Customs and Border Protection main detention facility for migrant children in Donna, Texas.

On Tuesday, the Biden administration allowed the Associated Press to tour the facility in Donna, and the outlet called the scene "a grim picture" due to the overcrowding and kids crammed together under foil blankets.

The AP reported that there are more than 17,000 unaccompanied migrant children in U.S. custody as of Monday, noting that Biden scrapped former President Donald Trump's policy of "expelling" them.

Biden has "tried to expel most families traveling together," the outlet noted, "but changes in Mexican law have forced agents to release many parents and children into the U.S."

Fox News reported that "the he Department of Health and Human Services is currently working to open facilities in cities throughout Texas to manage the large influx of children."

Anything else?

Under the Texas DPS's picture of the ranger holding the baby, a woman commented, "That's my son and I am extremely proud of what he is doing. Sad the news never portrays this type of heroism they all do on the border!"

Border traffickers, smugglers earned $14 million a day in February: report



Criminal organizations trafficking migrants over the U.S.-Mexico border likely earned more than $14 million per day during the month of February, U.S. Customs and Border Protection sources indicated to Fox News.

The news comes as many feared the ongoing crisis at the souther border would result in a business boom for bad actors, such as dangerous organized crime units looking to take advantage of the unprecedented numbers of migrants hoping to enter the U.S. in anticipation of lenient treatment from the Biden administration.

What are the details?

Agency officials reportedly shared estimates with the news outlet indicating that smuggling revenues last month totaled $411.5 million, or a daily average of $14.6 million. An estimated $34.1 million was made off of Central American children, $80.7 million off of Central American families, $139.5 million off of Central American single adults, and $157.2 million off of Mexicans.

"Trafficking is a multibillion-dollar industry," former Tucson Border Patrol Chief Roy Villareal told Fox News.

"A lot of these vulnerable populations use their life savings. Some are essentially indentured servants and they're working off this debt for a long period of time. In other cases, some of these migrants are asked to transport narcotics or some form of crime to work off a different part of their debt," added Villareal, who served in the agency for 30 years before retiring in December.

Fox News noted in its report that migrants often pay a portion of the smuggling fees upfront and then the remainder of the fees are paid over time by the individual, their family, or perhaps their employer. In exchange for the money, smuggling organizations usually provide transportation to the border as well as food, shelter, and a guide to get across.

"In some cases, the fees also cover transportation to a place of employment where the worker is expected to remain for years," the report added.

What else?

Earlier this month, news broke that some officials within Mexico's government were concerned that "migrant president" Joe Biden was creating business for gangs and cartels with his administration's open borders messaging.

Similarly, Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar (Texas), who represents a district near the southern border, warned that bad actors would take advantage of the worsening situation, saying, "The bad guys know how to market this."

Only days later, Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott relayed a message given to him by Border Patrol agents: Cartels and other criminal organizations were indeed getting rich off of the crisis.

The Fox News report lends even further credence to the fears that have been expressed.