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A U.S. Border Patrol agent apprehends illegal aliens who have just crossed the Rio Grande from Mexico into Penitas, Texas, on March 21, 2019. Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times
Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) officers have apprehended four individuals wanted for sex-related crimes against children.
According to an Oct. 15 CBP press release, the officers assigned to the Office of Field Operations at the Laredo Field Office found the four men over a three-day period based on outstanding warrants.
“Over the Columbus Day holiday weekend our frontline CBP officers at Laredo Field Office ports of entry maintained their vigilance and apprehended four men wanted on outstanding warrants for alleged sex-related charges involving children,” said Field Operations Director Donald Kusser of the Laredo Field Office.
“Sex-related offenses involving children are among the most heinous offenses we encounter. We work diligently to ensure that individuals accused of these kinds of crimes are held accountable and have their day in court.”
Increased security at the border between the United States and Mexico has been a cornerstone of the Trump administration. However, the southern border isn’t the only place being bolstered by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees CBP.
The security agency announced on Oct. 13 that DHS law enforcement has made “over 1,500 arrests across Illinois including of pedophiles, vicious gang members, and armed robbers,” as part of their Operation Midway Blitz.
Luis Manuel Mendez III, a 31-year-old U.S. citizen, was apprehended as a pedestrian at the Gateway to the Americas Bridge on Oct. 13, where he was sent for a secondary inspection. CPB officers discovered Mendez was wanted on a felony arrest warrant from Bexar County, Texas, for aggravated sexual assault of a child.
Isidro Gutierrez, a 57-year-old U.S. citizen, was a bus passenger apprehended at the Juarez-Lincoln Bridge on Oct. 12. He was wanted on a felony warrant issued by the Laredo Police Department for indecency with a child.
Similarly, on the same day and at the same bridge, Armando Hernandez, 32, also a U.S. citizen, was arrested, also on an outstanding felony warrant issued by the Laredo Police Department due to alleged indecency with a child by sexual contact.
One day before that, on Oct. 11, 65-year-old Gilberto Fernandez Vega, a Mexican citizen, was detained at the Gateway International Bridge in Brownsville, attempting to cross in a vehicle. It was discovered that he had an outstanding felony warrant by the Cameron County Sheriff’s Office for alleged indecency with a child by sexual contact.
All four suspects were arrested and are being sent back to face charges in the appropriate jurisdictions.
Michael W. Banks, chief of U.S. Border Patrol, lauded his agency’s successes in an Oct. 10 post on X, saying that the nation now has the “lowest number of illegal crossings since 1970,” under the current administration.
