- A Mexican national residing in the U.S. illegally was caught on a Greyhound bus by Border Patrol agents during an inspection Monday.
- The arrest came about two weeks after Greyhound announced it would no longer allow Border Patrol agents to conduct warrantless searches on its property — including buses.
- Customs and Border Protection says the searches have helped the agency nab criminal illegal aliens and curb the flow of illicit narcotics near the country’s borders.
Roughly two weeks after Greyhound announced it would no longer allow Border Patrol agents to conduct immigration checks without a warrant, a previously deported illegal alien was found on one of its buses.
Border Patrol agents working near Yuma, Arizona, on Monday arrested a Mexican national riding a Greyhound bus who was in the country unlawfully, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced in a press release.
The apprehension came about two weeks after the major bus company declared it would no longer allow immigration checks on its premises without warrants, reversing a years-long policy.
Agents performing immigration checks at the Wellton Station Border Patrol referred a Greyhound bus for secondary inspection on Monday. During this check, agents came across an individual who said he was a U.S. citizen and presented a birth certificate and a California ID card. However, the individual did not resemble the man on his identification.
When agents removed him from the bus to further investigate, it also became apparent that he did not speak English. After conducting a biometric analysis and determining he was not the same man on his identification paperwork, the individual admitted he was in country illegally, according to the agency.
Orfa, a migrant from Honduras, and her children (from L) Rachel, Carolina and Bayron get back onto a Greyhound bus following a pitstop in Alamogordo, New Mexico, U.S., May 16, 2018. REUTERS/Loren Elliott
The individual, a 32-year-old male from Michoacán, Mexico, stated that he purchased the bogus documents in Mexico for the equivalent of $100. A background check on him revealed that he was previously deported and that this was not the first time he’s been busted for carrying fraudulent documents — he was found to be in possession of a stolen permanent resident card in October 2019.
The illegal alien has been charged with for identify theft, CBP announced.
A Greyhound spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
The charge comes shortly after Greyhound, the largest bus company in the U.S. declared Feb. 21 that it would no longer allow Border Patrol agents to conduct immigration checks on their buses or other property without a warrant. The company — which for a long time faced pressure from immigrant-rights groups to stop the checks — said it will be placing stickers on all of its buses stating that it does not consent to immigration checks.
“Our primary concern is the safety of our customers and team members, and we are confident these changes will lead to an improved experience for all parties involved,” the bus company said in a statement at the time.
A U.S. Border Patrol officer body searches an undocumented immigrant after he illegally crossed the U.S.-Mexico border and was caught on December 7, 2015 near Rio Grande City, Texas. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
In response, CBP noted how it has used these immigration checks for years to prevent not only criminal illegal aliens, but also narcotics, from traveling through the interior of the country.
“For decades, U.S. Border Patrol agents have routinely engaged in enforcement operations at transportation hubs,” CBP spokesperson Matthew Dyman told the DCNF in February. (RELATED: Border Apprehensions Rose Slightly, Ending Eight Straight Months Of Decline)
“Enforcement operations away from the immediate border are performed consistent with law and in direct support of immediate border enforcement efforts, and such operations function as a means of preventing smuggling and other criminal organizations from exploitation of existing transportation hubs to travel further into the United States,” he continued.
Shortly after Greyhound’s announcement, Concord Coach lines also declared it would no longer allow warrantless immigration searches.
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