Agents In One Area Of The Northern Border Saw More Migrants Cross Illegally In Eight Months Than Last Six Years
Jennie Taer on June 21, 2023
Border Patrol agents stationed along the Swanton sector of the northern border saw a surge in illegal migrants crossing in a period of eight months that topped what they experienced in the last six years, according to the agency.
Border Patrol recorded 3,823 illegal migrant encounters between October 2022 and May 2023 in the Swanton sector, which encompasses parts of New York, Vermont and New Hampshire, according to recently updated U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data. The new record coincides with a broader surge in illegal migration across the northern border, where agents have recorded more than 5,600 illegal migrant encounters in the last eight months.
“How do they do it? We’re often asked how our @borderpatrol Agents manage the increased volume of illicit cross-border traffic—currently over 6 years of arrests (2017-2022) in under 9 months (FY 2023). The answers: Grit. Integrity. Vigilance. Dedication to serve. Love of Country,” Swanton sector Border Patrol Chief Robert Garcia said in a statement regarding the surge.
Border Patrol agents and residents along the northern border have expressed concerns with the surge in interviews that took place in recent months with the Daily Caller News Foundation.
The northern border, which is the largest shared border in the world, lacks enough manpower to address the influx, agents stationed along the area previously told the DCNF. The surge can also be attributed to lax travel restrictions that allow many migrants to fly to Canada without having to obtain a visa.
“Everybody in this area is on edge,” Northern border resident Dan Cowan, whose home is located in the Swanton sector, previously told the DCNF. “We don’t have the holding capacity for Border Patrol or U.S. Customs. What are they gonna do with these people when they’re getting here? They’re not deporting them.”
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