Border Patrol Stops Bandit Targeting Migrants in California

(RepublicanNews.org) – An alleged bandit who had committed armed robbery against illegal migrants in California was shot dead by Border Patrol agents on the morning of Sunday, March 3rd. The suspect was confirmed to have also been a migrant who had been allegedly targeting those turning themselves in for processing in the San Diego area. According to the U.S. Border Patrol, this episode was just part of a larger pattern of criminals crossing the border from Mexico in order to rob migrants as they entered the U.S., before returning to Mexico with their loot.

The March 3rd shooting took place when Border Patrol agents responded to information about “bandit activity” and found a group of suspects robbing illegal migrants who were on their way to surrender to agents for processing. One suspect was shot and killed while the others managed to flee the scene unharmed. No border patrol agents were harmed during the encounter.

Just over a week before this shooting, Jason Owens, U.S. Border Patrol Chief, had posted on X, formerly Twitter, that surveillance technology had been able to capture images of migrant robberies being carried out, and said that this serves to illustrate the inherent danger posed by illegal border crossings. He added that while Border Patrol agents had managed to make 890,000 arrests at the border over the course of the fiscal year, more agents on the ground were needed to tackle criminal migrant activity in the region.

It has been estimated that over 7,000,000 migrants have entered the U.S. illegally since Joe Biden was sworn in as president in 2021, with thousands expected to have slipped out of reach of law enforcement agencies since making their way into the country. According to Owens, during the 2024 fiscal year Border Patrol has found over 6,400 migrants who already have criminal convictions and at least 180 who are known to be affiliated with criminal gangs, including the notorious MS-13 gang known to have engaged in a variety of violent crimes up to and including murder.