EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) — Drug cartels cashed in when migrants were flocking to Mexico with hopes of getting to the U.S.
The migrants paid thousands of dollars to get to the border, and in many cases, paid more to be smuggled across.
But many became the targets of cartels and were kidnapped and held for ransom, including those already in the U.S.
Then the U.S. began to crack down on illegal immigration. President Joe Biden put strict limits on asylum, forcing migrants to sign up for appointments and wait for them in Mexico. When President Donald Trump returned to office, he announced a crackdown on illegal immigration that did away with asylum appointments and sent troops to the border.
In the first six months since Trump took office, migrant encounters at the Southwest border have hit record lows.
In Mexican border towns, migrants have all but disappeared. But it’s created a disturbing trend in which criminals are targeting civilians, including Americans.
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Last month, six people, including two alleged members of the transnational criminal organization, were arrested in Juarez in connection with a series of kidnappings of migrants and local residents.
In this episode of Border Report Live, correspondents Julian Resendiz and Salvador Rivera discuss recent homicides involving Americans in Mexico. One, the death of a 17-year-old girl from New Mexico, remains under investigation. Another involved surfers from San Diego and Australia who were robbed and killed at a popular spot not far from the border.
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Join the award-winning Border Report team at borderreport.com for a daily, in-depth discussion about people living, working and migrating along the U.S.-Mexico border.
You can also watch past episodes of the Border Report Live, highlighting not only immigration and border security, but cartel violence in Mexico, border trade, politics and the U.S. and Mexico’s ongoing water dispute on the border.
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