Border Patrol agents rescue three lost illegal immigrants

Border Patrol agents assigned to the El Centro Sector, rescued three illegal immigrants abandoned by their smuggler in the mountains, Saturday evening.

On Friday, March 9, agents received information from a person in Mexico, that three people were lost, after illegally crossing the Mexico/United States international boundary the night before.

Agents assigned to the El Centro station began a coordinated search. As the search went on, agents from the Border Patrol Search, Trauma, and Rescue (BORSTAR) team, the Civil Air Patrol, and aircraft from CBP Air and Marine Operations were dispatched to assist with locating the lost individuals.

Through tireless searching and coordination with a relative of one of the lost individuals, Border Patrol agents rescued the lost men on Sunday morning at approximately 5:00 a.m. Agents provided the three men first aid and no other medical attention was necessary.

Agents determined that all three men were Mexican citizens illegally in the country. Agents transported the three to the El Centro Border Patrol station for processing.

“Our agents never gave up searching for these men in distress over the course of about three days,” said Assistant Chief Patrol Agent David S. Kim. “We wanted to ensure that these men didn’t lose their lives because a callous smuggler abandoned them in one of the most rugged areas in California”