Agents Arrest Convicts; Seize 1,500 Pounds of Marijuana

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Edinburg, TX ─ Over the past weekend, U.S. Border Patrol agents assigned to the McAllen Station arrested four illegal aliens, who had been convicted of a variety of crimes; while Weslaco Station agents seized more than 1,500 pounds of marijuana. 

The first man was arrested Friday as part of a group of eight illegal aliens from Mexico, who were apprehended near Mission, Texas. During processing at the station, agents discovered the man had been convicted in Connecticut for reckless homicide.

In a separate incident on Saturday, agents apprehended a group of 24 illegal aliens, of a variety of nationalities, near Hidalgo, Texas. While performing a records check, agents uncovered that one of the illegal aliens from Guatemala had been arrested in Virginia and convicted for sexual battery.

Later that day near Penitas, agents arrested another group of 18 illegal aliens. It was later learned that one of the members of the group, a national of Honduras, had been convicted in California for felony kidnapping.

The fourth convict was arrested Sunday as part of a group of 10 illegal aliens apprehended near Havana, Texas. An Ecuadorian member of that group had been arrested in New York on a felony rape charge and ultimately convicted for sexual misconduct. All subjects were processed accordingly.

The marijuana was seized when agents working south of Alamo, Texas, near the Santa Ana Wildlife Refuge saw a suspicious minivan parked near a levee. As agents approached the van, the driver backed the vehicle up onto the levee and drove away until he reached a locked gate. Agents arrested the man and found more than 1,000 pounds of marijuana inside the vehicle. Agents returned to the area where the van was first spotted and found nearly 500 additional pounds of marijuana hidden in the brush. The marijuana has an estimated value of more than $1.2 million. Additionally agents found 0.3 grams of cocaine, with an estimated value of more than $530, in the driver’s possession.

The man and the narcotics were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration for further investigation.

To report suspicious activity, call the Rio Grande Valley Border Patrol Sector’s toll-free telephone number at 800-863-9382.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.