EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – The Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) flew over 120 migrants on a chartered plane from El Paso to Chicago on Tuesday evening.
According to a statement from his office, Gov. Greg Abbott is expanding the border bus mission he launched in April of 2022 to include flights to Chicago.
The statement said the group of migrants agreed to be flown to the city:
“Migrants willingly choose to go to sanctuary cities, having signed a voluntary consent waiver available in multiple languages upon boarding that they agreed on the destination.”
However, the flight was not coordinated with the city of Chicago, which released a statement Wednesday afternoon saying no one was prepared to receive the group of migrants.
O’Hare airport police received a call around 7:15 p.m., stating that a plane chartered by the TDEM had dropped off nearly 100 migrants at one of their private airports, according to the statement.
“Two unidentified individuals who flew with the plane reportedly fled Signature Flight and left the scene in an Uber before the arrival of police,” the city of Chicago statement read.
The city is currently seeking shelter for the group of migrants who are now staying at the airport, according to the statement.
KTSM reached out to TDEM, which confirmed that they did charter that flight at the direction of Abbott. However, they claimed that the city of Chicago’s statement is “inaccurate” and “misleading.”
The spokesperson for TDEM said the flight included “private security personnel to ensure the safety of the passengers” who left upon the arrival of all passengers and the completion of the trip.
Read: Read More