New England sees more illegal border arrests in January than previous 12 years
Anna Giaritelli
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The number of immigrants arrested after illegally crossing the Canadian border into New England jumped in January to levels never seen before — and during the most dangerous time of year.
U.S. Border Patrol agents stationed across the northernmost part of upstate New York, Vermont, and New Hampshire apprehended 367 noncitizens who came over the northern border last month. The 367 figure is more than the previous 12 Januarys combined: 344.
Federal law enforcement is especially concerned because of the dangerous, subzero temperatures the region sees during the winter months.
“As we progress deeper into winter and continue to address the ongoing pace of illicit cross-border traffic, the level of concern for the lives and welfare of our Border Patrol Agents and those we are encountering — particularly vulnerable populations — continues to climb,” said Border Patrol’s Swanton Sector Chief Patrol Agent Robert Garcia in a statement Sunday.
ILLEGAL BORDER CROSSINGS IN JANUARY DROPPED TO LOWEST LEVELS IN NEARLY TWO YEARS
Garcia announced Tuesday that agents had arrested 115 immigrants from 12 countries over the past week. Most arrests were in eastern New York and Vermont, according to previous announcements from the sector.
“It cannot be stressed enough: not only is it unlawful to circumvent legal means of entry into the United States, but it is extremely dangerous, particularly in adverse weather conditions, which our Swanton Sector has in incredible abundance,” Garcia said.
Swanton Sector covers a 300-mile stretch of the 4,000-mile northern border, and its agents have made more arrests in the past year than agents in any other region up north.
Agents use snowmobiles to get through multiple feet of snow in extremely remote areas, even when the temperatures dip to negative double digits during the winter months.
Unlike the southern border, there is no towering steel wall to prevent illegal immigration, and technology to track suspicious activity is not as prevalent compared to drones, ground sensors, infrared cameras, blimps, and long-range cameras.
Mexicans attempting to enter illegally through Canada make up the majority of the arrests in that sector. Title 42 public health restrictions have made it difficult for Mexicans to enter the United States at the southern border, forcing those turned away to seek another route, including buying a one-way plane ticket north to Toronto or Montreal.
Although arrests on the northern border pale in comparison to the number of immigrants apprehended by Border Patrol agents along the Mexico border, they are quickly returning to pre-pandemic norms and could rise further.
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Border Patrol data that track northern border apprehensions only go back to 2000, which was the year with the highest number of arrests — approximately 12,800. In the two decades since then, northern border arrests have largely hung between 4,000 and 8,000 per year.
Down on the southern border, agents apprehended 128,410 immigrants in January compared to 579 across the entire northern border, according to CBP data.