On September 8, 121 immigrants turned themselves in to Ajo Station Border Patrol agents near the Senita Basin north of Lukeville.
The group was comprised of 111 adults and children from Guatemala and 10 from El Salvador.
Four days earlier, on Sept. 4, agents found 163 illegal immigrants several miles west of Lukeville’s Port of Entry. On Aug. 20, Ajo Station agents encountered 128 illegal immigrants who had been abandoned by their smugglers. Another 103 people entered the U.S. as a group on Aug. 28.
“This is where our law enforcement mission quickly turns from enforcing immigration laws to preserving life by ensuring the welfare and wellbeing of these migrant families,” said Tucson Sector Chief Patrol Agent Rodolfo Karisch. “Transnational criminal organizations are exploiting these immigrant families and demonstrating their blatant disregard for human life.”