U.S. Border Patrol rescues four migrants from water tank in Texas

U.S. Border Patrol agents rescued four migrants trapped inside a portable water tank in South Texas on September 14. The individuals, identified as two Bolivian citizens, one Cuban national, and one Colombian national, were discovered during an inspection of a pickup truck by agents from the Eagle Pass South Border Patrol Station in the Del Rio Sector.

Agents had to use power tools to cut open the plastic tank because the migrants were unable to escape from the inside. Following the rescue, the individuals were taken to the Uvalde South station for immigration processing. The driver of the vehicle, a 19-year-old U.S. citizen, was arrested and turned over to Homeland Security Investigations to face federal charges for human smuggling.

Anthony Good, Chief Patrol Agent of the Del Rio Sector, described the smuggling method as ‘dangerous and barbaric,’ noting that the migrants were treated as ‘mere human cargo’ with no means of escape.