Border Patrol arrests multiple illegal immigrants with drug cartel connections, child sex assault convictions

U.S. Border Patrol in Texas this week arrested multiple illegal immigrants with criminal backgrounds, including some with connections to Mexican drug cartels and others with child sexual assault convictions. 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said Border Patrol agents arrested more than a dozen migrants after they entered the U.S. illegally through the El Paso Sector. 

Background checks showed that sex offenders, child predators, and drug traffickers were among those arrested.

Other offenses included illegal firearm possession, assault, domestic violence, and burglary. Some of them were found to have connections to gangs or Mexican drug cartels, including La Linea, Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación, Artistas Asesinios, Cartel de Los Soles, and MS-13. 

BORDER PATROL HAS ARRESTED 6,400 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS WITH CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS, 178 GANG MEMBERS IN FY24

Many of the migrants arrested, CBP said, are associated with murders, kidnappings, extortion, and other criminal activities from Central America. 

Their apprehension came amid the arrest of an illegal immigrant in the death of Augusta University student, Laken Riley. UGA police found the 22-year-old’s body with “visible injuries” in a forested area behind Lake Herrick Thursday afternoon. 

Jose Ibarra, 26, is a Venezuelan national who illegally crossed into El Paso, Texas in September 2022 and was released into the U.S. via parole. 

Fox News’ Adam Shaw contributed to this report.