EL PASO, Texas — U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested a murder suspect and uncovered 77 smuggled migrants during a raid on two stash houses in El Paso on Tuesday, authorities said.
The El Paso Sector Anti-Smuggling Unit, along with Homeland Security Investigations and local law enforcement, served a warrant on a property on Overland Avenue, where they found 72 migrants in overcrowded, unsanitary conditions. Some migrants were discovered in a storage shed with limited air flow and piles of trash.
Two individuals at the scene were identified as caretakers and are facing charges for human smuggling, officials said. Investigators also located a second stash house on Val Verde Street, where five additional migrants were found.
Among the 77 migrants, who were from Mexico, Honduras, Ecuador, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic, one individual from the Dominican Republic was identified as wanted for murder through The International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) database.
The migrants were processed for removal under Title 8 and were reported to be in good condition, according to authorities. Since the start of Fiscal Year 2024, El Paso agents have uncovered more than 270 stash houses, taking 2,663 migrants into custody.
“El Paso community provides an important partnership to help us safeguard our city,” said A. Scott Good, El Paso Sector Chief Patrol Agent.
