More than 67,000 people were caught illegally crossing the southwest border of the United States in both October and November, a more than 65% increase from the previous year, statistics released by the Customs & Border Protection on Monday show.
The numbers included a 31% increase from the previous year from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, the Central American countries known as the Northern Triangle, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Acting Commissioner Mark Morgan said during a media briefing Monday.
Speaking to reporters Monday, Morgan blamed the surge in detentions in part due to recent court rulings and the statements and promises of a new administration headed by Joe Biden to rescind Trump administration policies, according to Border Report.
"Any immigration strategy that comprises of release, protect and reward is not a strategy at all," he said.
He added the statements are "luring migrants to the southwest border."
Those apprehended attempting to cross the southwest border in November numbered 67,101, was slightly fewer than the 67,639 apprehensions in October.
The November apprehensions in 2019 were 42,643, which also were down from October 2019, 45,139, CBP statistics show.
Particularly noteworthy, according to Morgan, were the number of apprehensions of unaccompanied minors. There were 4,792 in October and 4,592 in November, "the highest levels in the past 12 months," he said.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.