WASHINGTON – The number of arrests for illegally crossing the U.S. border from Mexico fell 6.3% in April, the fourth lowest month under the Biden administration, authorities said Wednesday, defying a typical spring increase.
U.S. officials have attributed the decline largely to increased enforcement inside Mexico, including in rail yards where migrants are known to board freight trains. Mexican Foreign Minister Alicia Bárcena told reporters on Tuesday that Mexico will not allow more than 4,000 illegal entries into the United States per day, which is the highest number of arrests made by Border Patrol on some days in December. The number of cases decreased from over 10,000, he said.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said 128,884 immigrant arrests were made in April, down from 137,480 in March and just half of December’s record high of 249,737. . Although still historically high, the sharp decline in arrests since late December is welcome news for President Joe Biden on a key issue that has dogged him in election-year polls.
San Diego replaced Tucson, Arizona, as the busiest of the Border Patrol’s nine districts along the Mexican border for the first time since the 1990s, with 37,370 people.
Troy Miller, the acting commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, said the numbers have decreased as a result of increased enforcement, including deportations, and cooperation with other countries.
“As a result of this increased enforcement, encounters at the Southwest border have not increased, bucking previous trends. We remain vigilant about continually changing immigration patterns,” he said. said.
In April, authorities allowed 41,400 people to cross land with Mexico through an online booking app called CBP One, bringing the total to more than 591,000 since its introduction in January 2023.
The United States is also accepting up to 30,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans who apply online for financial sponsorship and arrive by commercial flight. By April, approximately 435,000 people had entered the country, including 91,000 Cubans, 166,700 Haitians, 75,700 Nicaraguans, and 101,200 Venezuelans.
