Border Patrol encounters of migrants crossing the northern border illegally hit a two-decade high in October, according to recently updated Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data.
There were 1,521 such encounters recorded in October alone, according to the data. The last time monthly encounters surpassed that number was in August 2001, when Border Patrol recorded 2,016, according to federal data.
Illegal immigration at the northern border has skyrocketed in recent years, jumping from 916 in fiscal year 2021, to 2,238 in fiscal year 2022 and to 10,021 in fiscal year 2023, according to CBP data.
“This domino effect all starts on the southwest but then the effects are felt everywhere because we have to use resources to deal with what’s taking place down south and when you do that, then of course, you leave yourself wide open in other areas, and that’s what we’re seeing on the North right now,” National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd toldthe Daily Caller News Foundation in September 2022.
While the numbers have been increasing, Border Patrol agents have been pulled off the frontlines of the U.S.-Canadian border to help their colleagues at the southern border process illegal migrants both virtually and through temporary deployments.
Canada offers some foreign travelers visa waivers, making the journey easier for certain nationalities to fly and then cross into the U.S.
The number of Mexicans encountered crossing the northern border illegally surged from 882 in fiscal year 2022 to 4,868 in fiscal year 2023, according to CBP data.
Jennie Taer on November 15, 2023
