The Texas Military Department has refuted claims made by a U.S. representative that the Texas National Guard prevented Border Patrol agents from assisting three unlawful migrants, a woman and two children, who were drowning in the Rio Grande.
Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) claimed on Saturday that the Texas National Guard denied Border Patrol agents access on January 12 to assist the struggling migrants just days after the state seized Shelby Park in Eagle Pass, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
However, a filing by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security asking the U.S. Supreme Court to block Texas from taking over operations at Shelby Park indicates that the National Guard was not made aware of the unlawful migrants in question until after they had already drowned.
“Claims that TMD prevented Border Patrol from saving the lives of drowning migrants are wholly inaccurate. At the time that Border Patrol requested access, the drownings had occurred, Mexican Authorities were recovering the bodies, and Border Patrol expressed these facts to the TMD personnel on site,” an update on the Texas Military Department investigation stated.
Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin posted photos of the filing, which states that Border Patrol indeed alerted the Texas National Guard to the drowning incident after the fact. Mexican officials had informed Border Patrol around 9 p.m. that three unlawful migrants had died on the U.S. side of the river around 8 p.m. and that two other unlawful migrants were in distress in the same area, according to the DHS filing.
Gov. Greg Abbott responded to the filing’s release in a social media post claiming Rep. Cuellar and some media were so “eager to point finger at Texas for drowning of migrants they forgot to get the facts.”
Texas Department of Public Safety Lt. Chris Olivarez also responded, declaring that the filing “completely discredits all reporting that prematurely criticized Texas without having factual information.”
As for the two unlawful migrants that were presumed to have traveled with the three deceased, per the Texas Military, “Two migrants were apprehended by [the Texas Military Department], with one turned over to DPS and the other transferred to EMS in response to initial hypothermic conditions.”
“Additionally, TMD remained engaged with lights, night vision goggles, and thermals to ensure that no additional migrants were in the river or in distress,” the Texas Military Department update reported.
However, the DHS filing relates a different outcome for the other two migrants in distress: “The following day, Mexican officials confirmed to Border Patrol that the two migrants who Mexican officials had reported were in distress on the U.S. side had attempted to return to Mexico and were rescued by Mexican government airboat while suffering from hypothermia.”
In addition, the Mexican authorities confirmed they had recovered the bodies of the three drowning victims and had rescued two additional migrants who had attempted to cross that same night, per the DOJ filing.
It is unclear whether the two individuals that TMD says it rescued were the same ones that Mexican authorities said they had saved or if there were two pairs of migrants.
Lt. Chris Olivarez noted in his post, “Unfortunately, the loss of life will continue to occur as long as illegal immigrants are encouraged to cross a dangerous river illegally. Texas will remain steadfast in deterring illegal border crossings & performing rescue operations.”
The Texas National Guard took control of Shelby Park on January 10, alleging that the federal government has continued to “perpetuate illegal crossings.”
“The current posture is to prepare for future illegal immigrant surges and to restrict access to organizations that perpetuate illegal immigrant crossings in the park and greater Eagle Pass area,” read a statement from the Texas Military Department after the park was seized, as reported by Melugin.
The current plan for the state is to charge those who cross into the state unlawfully with criminal trespassing, a Class B misdemeanor that carries a fine of up to $2,000 or a jail term of 180 days, according to attorney Samuel Gardner.
