SoCal Border Patrol Sees 30% Rise In Undocumented Migrant 'Encounters'

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, CA — Each year, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection tracks "encounters" with undocumented migrants who cross into the United States, and the local Southern California arm of the federal agency is reporting a 30 percent increase year-to-date, according to an announcement Wednesday.

The agency keeps an ongoing record of encounters each fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1. In the current fiscal year, the U.S. Border Patrol San Diego Sector reports its agents have made 109,274 migrant encounters through April 4.

"This is a 30 percent increase from the same time last year when San Diego Sector agents encountered 83,884 individuals," according to Wednesday's announcement from the San Diego Sector.

According to the figures, Mexican nationals made up 42.75% of encounters, while citizens from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras made up less than 2% combined. The remaining encounters were migrants from "other" countries.

Single adults made up 77 percent, or 84,620 people, of the encounters, the figures show.

San Diego Sector is seeing crossings by "large groups of migrants," which is stressing manpower and detention space, according to the announcement.

The San Diego Sector includes a wide coverage area that encompasses 56,831 square miles, including 931 coastal miles from the California-Mexico border north to Oregon. It also includes inland mountains, canyons and desert areas. In addition to six San Diego stations, the San Diego Sector maintains stations in Murrieta and San Clemente.

In addition to migrant encounters, on Wednesday the San Diego Sector reported on fentanyl seizures in the current fiscal year.

So far, local agents have seized 817 pounds of fentanyl, putting the agency on track to surpass the record set last fiscal year when 1,052 pounds of fentanyl were seized.

San Diego Sector busts represent nearly 60% of all the fentanyl seized by the U.S. Border Patrol nationwide, according to the agency.

In addition to fentanyl, San Diego Sector agents have seized 1,123 pounds of methamphetamine, 824 pounds of cocaine, and 57 pounds of heroin this fiscal year, according to Wednesday's announcement.