Arrests of Illegal Border Crossers Have Spiked 237% Since April

The number of aliens arrested at the southern border for illegally entering the United States from Mexico has soared since April. This is in spite of the Trump administration‘s recent attempt to curtail illegal migration during the coronavirus pandemic.

In July, Border Patrol agents working in states along the southern border arrested 38,347 people for unlawful crossing, according to Customs and Border Protection data released late last week. Arrests have increased 237% since April, the first full month that agents began immediately expelling people into Mexico after taking them into custody, known as Migrant Protection Protocols (aka Remain in Mexico). In April of 2020, fewer than 16,200 migrants were apprehended at the border compared to more than double that number last month. Historically, numbers have been lower during the hot summer months as the border terrain is already hard to cross without the intolerable summer heat.

According to the the Washington Examiner:

“A March recommendation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urged border officials not to detain immigrants. CBP responded to the March recommendation with plans to “expel” anyone who was encountered illegally entering the country, including those who claim asylum prior to removal. What is normally a days to weeks-long process of being returned home turned into a 96-minute process of being sent back to Mexico for more than 90% of all illegal crossers.”

This surge in arrests since April comes a year after the 2019 border crisis when federal law enforcement officials at the southern border were seeing more than 100,000 people cross illegally into the country each month. Although those numbers have dropped in the last 12 months, the sudden spike may indicate that the Trump administration’s steps to deter illegal immigration are hitting a bump.