Honduran migrant killed after being hit by a border patrol vehicle near US.-Mexico border in Texas


Honduran migrant is struck and killed by US Border Patrol vehicle while hiding in tall grass after crossing from Mexico into Texas

  • A Honduran man was killed and a second man was injured after they were run over by a border patrol vehicle Thursday while hiding in grass 
  • The incident took place near the U.S.-Mexico border near Kennedy County, Texas
  • The migrants were with a group of individuals who had cross the border and were struck by the vehicle in an area surrounded by thick and tall grass 
  • The injured migrant led the border officers to the other man who had been struck before paramedics declared him dead at scene of the accident 
  • An air ambulance transported the injured man to a hospital in Harlingen and was released later in the day 

A migrant from Honduras died and another was injured after they were struck by a U.S. Border Patrol vehicle while hiding in tall grass.

The unnamed man was struck and killed in Kennedy County, Texas, last Thursday shortly after illegally crossing into the US from Mexico.  

U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a statement that the border officers were surveying an area in Kennedy County on Thursday after they came across fresh footprints left behind by migrants that has passed through.

Border patrol agents on foot and in vehicles were inspecting the area that is surrounded by tall, thick grass that is also mixed with an area of taller vegetation and encountered two groups of migrants.

The officers later detected a third group, which informed them that a man who had crossed the border with them had been been hit by a vehicle.

The injured individual was located in a nearby grass area and led the border patrol officers to another fatally-wounded migrant.

A migrant family from Central America approached a U.S. Border Patrol vehicle moments after crossing the United States-Mexico border in El Paso, Texas, on February 5

A migrant family from Central America approached a U.S. Border Patrol vehicle moments after crossing the United States-Mexico border in El Paso, Texas, on February 5

U.S. Border Patrol agents take asylum seekers into custody on March 23, 2021 in McAllen, Texas

U.S. Border Patrol agents take asylum seekers into custody on March 23, 2021 in McAllen, Texas

An air ambulance arrived at the scene and pronounced the man dead. The other injured man was airlifted to a hospital in Harlingen for treatment. 

According to an initial accident report filed by U.S. Border Patrol, the border officers ‘were not aware anyone was burrowed in the grass nor were they aware anyone had been run over by a vehicle until informed by a migrant.’

The injured migrant was treated and discharged from hospital, and is expected to make a full recovery from his wounds.

A group of migrants wait in line to be processed and loaded onto a bus by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents after being detained when they crossed illegally into the United States from Mexico on June 02, 2019

A group of migrants wait in line to be processed and loaded onto a bus by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents after being detained when they crossed illegally into the United States from Mexico on June 02, 2019

CBP did not say whether the man was taken into custody following his hospital discharge.

The incident is being investigated by the Kenedy County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) and CBP Office of Professional Responsibility (CBP OPR).

A CBP monthly report released April 8 showed the number of migrants unlawfully crossing the United States-Mexico international borderline had risen to record levels.

Border patrol officers detained 172,331 migrants during March after stopping 101,028 people in February. The 70% increase is a 20-year record high. 

The agency’s data also reported 18,663 unaccompanied children were taken into custody in March, a 99% increase from the 9,271 migrant minors who were stopped for illegally crossing over from Mexico in February.  

Figures for the month of April are slate to be released next week. 

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