Agents rescue father and son lost in Jacumba wilderness
Grupo Beta distress call alerts Border Patrol to the situation
OCOTILLO, Calif. – U.S. Border Patrol agents from El Centro Sector rescued two, undocumented noncitizens, lost in the Jacumba Wilderness region late Tuesday afternoon at approximately 4:45.
El Centro Sectors Foreign Operations Branch (FOB) notified El Centro Station agents that they had received a distress call from Grupo Beta of a father and son who illegally crossed the U.S./Mexico international boundary. Grupo Beta is a service by the National Institute of Migration of Mexico offering water, medical aid, and information to immigrants at risk.
The father and son stated that they were lost in the mountains and had no water. El Centro Station’s Mountain Disrupt Unit responded to the area and began the search using GPS coordinates provided by Grupo Beta.
Air support also responded to the area to begin searching for the men. At approximately 5:20 p.m., agents located the lost father and son, nationals of Mexico, and conducted a welfare check.
The rescued, unauthorized immigrants were assessed; and no medical attention was required. Agents transported them to the El Centro Processing Center for further processing and were removed back to Mexico.
Since October, El Centro Sector Border Patrol agents have successfully rescued 104 individuals lost or in distress.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between official ports of entry. CBP is charged with securing the borders of the U.S. while enforcing hundreds of laws and facilitating lawful trade and travel.
