Migrants facing smuggling threat from border surge
Smuggler drops two toddlers from top of 14-foot barrier; reaction from former El Paso U.S. Marshal Robert Almonte.
A former El Paso U.S. Marshal warned Thursday that drug cartels are controlling "all of the activity" on the border, as the migrant crisis continues to expose the dangers for migrants and unaccompanied children.
"It used to be just smuggling drugs, but they're into everything…You have what you call gatekeepers there that control everything," Robert Almonte told "Fox & Friends First."
Almonte’s comments come on the heels of the Border Patrol releasing a disturbing video Wednesday of a smuggler dropping two toddlers, a 5-year-old and a 3-year-old, from the top of a 14-foot border barrier, stranding them in the U.S.
BORDER PATROL VIDEO SHOWS SMUGGLERS ABANDONING 5-YEAR-OLD, 3-YEAR-OLD AT THE BORDER
The former El Paso U.S. marshal mentioned he has been working with Kingsville, Texas police and Border Patrol agents in Texas over the past several days.
"Cartels are heavily involved in human smuggling because they're making a lot of money," Almonte added. "They've been doing that for a while and now they've increased their activities there."
As the border crisis continues to spiral "out of control" under the Biden administration, the former El Paso U.S. marshal said he recently spoke with a victim that was kidnapped in Mexico by the cartel and was held at gunpoint.
Almonte went on to say the victim had no involvement with the cartel and the reason he was captured was that "his family-owned businesses, they have money." The victim was eventually released five days later after his family reportedly paid about half a million dollars for his release.
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"That happens a lot," he told Fox News' Griff Jenkins. "The cartels are involved in that and they're going to continue to be…more involved in that type of activity."
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