Mexican authorities on Friday said they found hundreds of Central American migrants in three tractor-trailer trucks near the Mexico-Guatemala border.
As Reuters reports, Mexican agents said they found 329 Guatemalans and Hondurans inside the trucks during a routine check on Thursday. Among the migrants were 114 unaccompanied minors.
The stop was made south of Tuxtla Gutierrez, the capital city of the Mexican state of Chiapas.
According to a statement from the Mexican Interior Ministry, the migrants were provided with food and water. The unaccompanied minors were sent shelters while adults were taken to nearby offices to begin processing.
This incident comes as the Biden administration struggles to handle an enormous influx of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border.
It was reported on Saturday that there are currently more than 15,000 unaccompanied minors in U.S. custody, with hundreds of children reportedly kept much longer than the legally permitted 72 hours.
Reporters have not been permitted to enter the border facilities, leading for heightened calls for transparency from journalists and advocacy groups. No public photos have been released showing the conditions inside the facilities.
Immigrations and Customs Enforcement confirmed to The Hill on Saturday that the agency will begin placing families in hotels after signing an $80 million contract with the Endeavors non-profit in order to “provide temporary shelter and processing services for families who have not been expelled and are therefore placed in immigration proceedings for their removal from the United States.”
Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) predicted on Sunday that more than 1 million migrants will attempt to cross the border into the U.S. by the summer.
“It’s going to get worse. It’s going to get a lot worse, springtime, summer, more and more come over. The messages coming back that, ‘Hey, we got a new president; come on in. We’re open for business to the traffickers,’” McCaul said while appearing on ABC’s “This Week.”