Exploiting OLS Shortfalls, Cartels Continue to Recruit TX Teens

"At some point in the near future, cases involving vacuous juvenile smugglers will conceivably end in death"

By: Sheena Rodriguez| February 6, 2023

Social Media post by smugglers flaunting money

15 & 12 years old, the ages of two San Antonio teens smuggling an illegal alien. The minors were rescued Wednesday in Frio County after the juvenile driver wrecked the stolen vehicle, evading state law enforcement.

Utilizing social media, criminal cartel organizations lure American teens with the promise of easy money and little consequences by smuggling illegal aliens attempting to evade law enforcement. 

Bill Melugin @BillFOXLA

NEW: Dramatic new @TxDPS dashcam video shows two juvenile human smugglers, ages 15 & 12, sending their stolen vehicle airborne as they crash on IH-35 in Frio County. Critically injured migrant & both juvies lived. Both from San Antonio, likely recruited on social media @FoxNews

Wednesday's attempted smuggling crash highlights one of the many issues Texas has been forced to deal with due to Biden's open border policies. Operation Lone Star (OLS) was launched by Governor Abbott shortly after the Biden administration refused to enforce border security laws, subsequently incentivizing mass illegal migration. The arrest of criminal illegal aliens trespassing on private property escalated due to OLS efforts. However, one of the noticeable shifts in smuggling operations simultaneously began rising, exposing and exploiting finite state resources. 

Without going into many specifics, a report from KLTV spoke with RGV Chief Patrol Agent Brian S. Hastings, who described the spike in juvenile smugglers as "an alarming trend." KTLV noted that authorities arrested teenagers as young as 13 years old recruited from metroplex areas. 

In Bexar County, just days after more than 50 illegal aliens died in the back of a semi-truck, two adolescent drivers were arrested in Atascosa County for attempting to smuggle 14 unlawful migrants in the back of a tractor-trailer. The local report by MYSA stated that the 17-year-old was taken to the county jail, and the 16-year-old driver was taken to the Atascosa County Juvenile Detention Center. There have been no media updates on the alleged teen smugglers' cases. 

Last month, in a post titled "Counting the Cost: A Year in Review of the Border Crisis," we reviewed the data provided by Kinney County Sheriff Brad Coe during my recent trip to the Del Rio sector.

The post stated, "Of the smugglers detained in 2022, 218 were females (29% increase from 2021), and 12 were juveniles. The spike in women and minor smugglers alludes to strategic tactics by cartel organizations that exploit deficiencies in OLS and Texas resources, as proper holding facilities for females and juveniles are sorely needed in the state."

Unfortunately, this is a dangerous deficiency most may not be aware of, but Alliance for a Safe Texas feels it is essential Texans and fellow activists understand, particularly since the 88th Texas legislative session recently began.

Let's discuss a few examples media never picked up and have extremely negative consequences. 

In May 2022, a car chase ensued as a 15-year-old allegedly attempted to smuggle three illegal aliens. Reportedly, the teen was shot after he tried to run over a local deputy. The minor was sent to a hospital in San Antonio. The media failed to report what happened to the teen after his recovery. 

During the recent trip to the Del Rio sector, local law enforcement sources stated that the same 15-year-old was recently caught again attempting to smuggle additional illegal aliens further into the state near the area where the teen attempted to assault a local deputy. 

Social Media post by smugglers

An even more egregious case happened in June 2022 with zero media attention. During a podcast with Kinney County Attorney Brent Smith, three smuggling pursuits that occurred earlier that day was mentioned. According to Smith, one pursuit allegedly involved an attempted smuggler shooting into oncoming traffic in an attempt to divert law enforcement attention. Shortly after the incident, I was informed that the alleged smuggler was a minor who shot several rounds into oncoming traffic, hitting the vehicle of a local federal agent's spouse numerous times. Thankfully, according to a federal agent, the agent's spouse was not injured but was reportedly emotionally scarred from the attack. 

For several reasons, I stayed relatively quiet on the incident hoping that any media source would pick up the story. However, as a few weeks passed after the assault, according to federal and local officials, the minor was released from jail due to the lack of detention facilities equipped to house minors. The victim of the assault pulled a media interview scheduled to air due to safety concerns after the Texas teen was released. 

Purportedly, the Texas Rangers were assigned to the case, and due to the alleged smuggler's age, documentation revolving around this case was unobtainable even to state legislators' offices. Consequently, the media remained silent, a federal agent's family was shaken, and a reported violent smuggler was released back into Texas streets where he could likely re-offend. 

As mentioned earlier, similar sharp increases have occurred with female smugglers due to an enormous lack of state female detention centers. In some cases, mothers have been caught attempting to smuggle illegal aliens while their children are in the vehicle, as reported by Fox News. In a report with the Epoch Times, Sheriff Brad Coe of Kinney County and Suzanne West, the District Attorney, explained how female smugglers are released back into the streets shortly after arrest due to a lack of female detention facilities. 

Now that North Texas has thawed out from last week's ice storm, Alliance for a Safe Texas is preparing to testify during the Senate Finance Committee. Temporary jailing facilities with the capacity to house women and juveniles are a top priority for the 88th session. Women and especially minors, must not be allowed to roam freely after allegations of felony charges.

Appropriate holding until sentencing for alleged criminal offenses of smuggling and assault against law enforcement officials and fellow Texans must take priority. Otherwise, cartel organizations operating well throughout Texas will continue to increase the specific targeting of impressionable adolescents. At some point in the near future, cases involving vacuous juvenile smugglers will conceivably end in death.