Border Agents Discover 11 Immigrants Hiding in Appliances, Furniture in Truck from Mexico
U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced Monday it had stopped an attempted human smuggling operation at the San Ysidro port of entry in San Diego.
According to a CBP news release, officers had found the smuggled individuals in a furniture truck on Saturday.
Eleven Chinese nationals were discovered in the vehicle.
Photos included in the release showed people hiding inside furniture and appliances.
“CBP cannot stress enough the dangers of smuggling people,” Pete Flores, CBP’s director of field operations for San Diego, said.
“These are human beings that smugglers subject to inhumane conditions that could have deadly consequences,” he said. “Fortunately no one was seriously injured.”
According to the release, a U.S. citizen had driven the moving truck across the border into California.
Officers stopped the truck for a “further more intensive inspection.”
After searching the contents of the truck, officers discovered people inside a washing machine, a chest and a dresser.
CBP officers found 11 Chinese nationals hidden inside furniture inside a moving truck at the San Ysidro port of entry: https://t.co/RQYSXjWLOH pic.twitter.com/zfrenKAHZJ
— CBP San Diego (@CBPSanDiego) December 10, 2019
The truck’s driver was taken into custody and transported to a correctional facility, where he was awaiting criminal proceedings.
CBP has placed an immigration hold on the 11 individuals found in the truck.
Exactly a month earlier, CBP faced a similar situation at the same port of entry.
On Nov. 7, officers discovered six people in another attempted smuggling operation.
As in December’s case, those individuals were Chinese nationals.
In another similarity to December’s case, they were concealed in a moving truck.
The driver of that truck was also taken into custody.
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