WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th March, 2021) Texas authorities will begin interviewing migrant children as part of a statewide operation to crack down on human trafficking on the southern US border, Governor Greg Abbott's office said on Wednesday.
"Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) troopers and agents, as well as the Texas Rangers, will conduct interviews with unaccompanied minors who crossed the border to identify victims of human trafficking and gain actionable intelligence that will aid in the arrest of traffickers," Abbott's office said in a press release.
Abbott has asked the Biden administration to grant Texas authorities' access to a convention center in the city of Dallas that will house up to 3,000 migrant children who arrived in the United States from Mexico without thier parents.
There are about 1,000 Texas state police officers deployed at the Texas border with Mexico as part of the mission to better secure the border, the release said.
Data from US Customs and Border Protection shows 9,457 unaccompanied migrant children were apprehended at the southern border in February, which is a substantial increase from the 5,858 unaccompanied migrant children apprehended in January. At least 29,729 migrant children have been apprehended at the US-Mexico border in the period from October to February.
