Agents protect two juveniles from human trafficking

Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents assigned to the Yuma Central Processing Center identified two unaccompanied alien children believed to be victims of human trafficking on Sunday at approximately 9:30 a.m.

Agents arrested eight subjects after they illegally crossed into the United States near the San Luis Port of Entry and were then transported to the Yuma Central Processing Center.

A BP agent interviewed one of the subjects, a 16-year-old male, who gave a written phone number for a person he claimed was a relative living in the U.S.

The agent called the number and spoke to a female who claimed to be the relative. After questioning, the agent was able to establish that the female was not in fact a relative and was impersonating one in hopes of having the juvenile released to her.

The juvenile eventually admitted that the woman was not a relative, and that his parents had arranged for him to be smuggled from Guatemala to Michigan in order to perform unspecified work for an unidentified person.

Agents later spoke to a second juvenile from the original group of eight, a 17-year-old male. The second minor had an almost identical story as the 16-year-old to include the same alleged relative and phone number.

Both juveniles were processed as unaccompanied alien children.