26 people were rescued, some with injuries, and 7 suspects were arrested in a Texas human smuggling operation, sheriff says

By Christina Maxouris, CNN

(CNN) — Officials in southern Texas say they have disrupted a human smuggling operation, helping rescue 26 people – 11 of whom are in the hospital – and taking seven suspects into custody.

The 26 people who were rescued endured “miserable conditions” throughout their journey into the area, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said in a Thursday afternoon news conference.

Though authorities don’t know when or where the group may have crossed the border into the US and how long they have been in the country, officials believe the victims were transported inside a false truck compartment for at least three hours Thursday before they were taken to a house with no air-conditioning, no running water, and where authorities believe buckets were being used for toilets. Investigators also believe the residence was also the site of previous animal fighting, the sheriff said.

“It’s miserable conditions in there and it’s just blazing hot,” Salazar told reporters, standing near the house. “Fortunately, we were able to get these people before any of them passed.”

The group includes an 18-year-old woman – who authorities believe is the youngest among the victims – and a woman from Guatemala who paid roughly $16,000 to make it to that point, Salazar said. Officials don’t yet know the countries of origin of the rest of the group, the sheriff said.

Those who were taken to the hospital endured heat-related and other minor medical injuries, the sheriff said. Temperatures in San Antonio, the Bexar County seat, reached up to at least 102 degrees Fahrenheit on Thursday.

“We don’t yet know if these people came over the border this morning or if they were already here in a stash house in another part of the state on this side of the border,” Salazar said. “We don’t know if they were smuggled across against their will, we just don’t know at this point.

“But again, this is the fault of the blood-thirsty organizations that are bringing these people across and putting them in harm’s way,” he added.

Salazar’s news conference comes two days after President Joe Biden announced a new executive action that bars migrants who cross the US-Mexico border illegally from seeking asylum once a daily threshold is met, unless they meet certain exemptions.

The measure, which went into effect Wednesday, faced criticism from progressives and others who have said the move is similar to steps taken under former President Donald Trump.

How Thursday’s operation in Texas unfolded

Bexar County officials first received information Thursday morning that a smuggling operation appeared to be taking place. Authorities discovered the alleged smugglers were transporting the group using a “long gooseneck trailer,” which officials began to surveil, Salazar said.

The group of more than two dozen people were lying on a hard mesh inside a “large false compartment,” exposed to the elements for several hours and without access to water, Salazar said. The vehicles eventually pulled into the house the victims were taken to, according to the sheriff.

“That trailer … you can be standing right there next to it and not know that that thing contains 26 people,” Salazar said. “So it drove by thousands of cars, easily.”

Salazar said the suspects taken into custody were involved in the human smuggling operation and referred to them as “coyotes” – a term commonly used for human smugglers. There may be more arrests as the investigation continues, the sheriff said.

Authorities found bulletproof vests and long rifles in a back residence, he added, and said Thursday’s incident appears to be part of a larger operation “that’s been in existence for some time.”

Local and federal agencies, as well as US Customs and Border Protection, are assisting in the case, he added.

The sheriff also noted that when authorities first arrived at the house where the group was being held Thursday, some people took off running, but he said he believes everyone is accounted for.

“Now it is possible that somebody’s laying up in the brush somewhere that got away. We would tell area residents, keep your doors locked, although we don’t believe there’s anybody at large, it’s always possible, so if you see any suspicious activities, any suspicious persons, give us a call,” he said.

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