YUMA, Ariz. – Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents identified two fraudulent family units while processing different events over the weekend.
An eight-year-old girl who illegally entered the United States with a 36-year-old man, who claimed to be her father, was later determined to be an unaccompanied child. After agents identified discrepancies in their stories, the man admitted to being a friend of the child’s mother, who is in Brazil. The two were separated and processed accordingly.
In addition, agents determined that a 14-year-old girl and a 40-year-old woman who claimed to be daughter and mother were a niece and aunt. The two Romanian nationals illegally entered the country together but were separated under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act after the fraud was discovered.
“Border Patrol agents continue to identify children who are fraudulently used to circumvent our immigration system,” said Yuma Sector Chief Patrol Agent Chris T. Clem. “Through the interview process, agents are able to identify discrepancies. The safety and well-being of these children is of the utmost importance.”