In Dakar, Senegal, fake travel agencies are offering migrants complete packages for illegal entry into the United States via the Mexico border. These agencies promise visa-free travel to Europe, subsequently connecting migrants to smuggling networks for illegal border crossings into North America, most prevalently through bus-networks in Sonora.
The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials have noted a significant rise in organized travel, with migrants often misled and victimized by these transnational criminal organizations. These agencies connect migrants to smuggling operations that then facilitate their movement up to the southern US border. This alarming trend highlights a new facet of the global migrant crisis, demonstrating how migrants from over 150 countries are being lured to the US-Mexico border.
Acting CBP Commissioner Troy Miller has expressed concern over the escalating challenge this poses to border control, emphasizing the need for additional resources and comprehensive immigration reform in a recent interview on Fox. In the 2023 fiscal year, there was a substantial increase in arrests of migrants from countries like Senegal, Mauritania, China, and India, with 214,000 recorded.
The situation has been further exacerbated by the rising number of migrants attempting to enter the US, either legally through ports of entry or illegally between them. This influx has led to an overburdened immigration court system, with a backlog now exceeding three million cases, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University.
As the Biden administration seeks supplemental funding, including $14 billion for border funding, the debate intensifies in Washington with Republicans demanding stricter asylum restrictions and greater enforcement. With no resolution in sight until January at the earliest, the CBP and other federal partners face a continuing struggle to manage this complex and evolving crisis effectively.
Meanwhile, in New York, Mayor Eric Adams issued an executive order to regulate the influx of migrant buses arriving from Texas. The order, effective immediately, mandates charter bus companies to notify the city’s Emergency Management Office 32 hours prior to their arrival. Additionally, buses are now restricted to drop off asylum seekers at a designated location on West 41st Street, between 8:30 a.m. and noon on weekdays.
Adams, in a joint virtual press conference with Mayors Brandon Johnson of Chicago and Mike Johnston of Denver, emphasized the necessity of this measure for orderly assistance and safety of migrants. Non-compliance with the order could lead to a Class B misdemeanor, with potential criminal charges, fines, lawsuits, and even impoundment of buses.
Adams reiterated the urgency for federal intervention, echoing the broader struggles across the country and the same concerns voiced by the CBP Commissioner.
