U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced on Wednesday agents had encountered over 180,000 illegal immigrants attempting to enter the United States in May, a slight increase from April. Since President Joe Biden entered into office, there has been a historic surge in people attempting to illegally cross into the country.
CBP encountered 180,034 illegal immigrants during May compared to 178,854 in April and 173,337 in March. CBP expelled 112,302 individuals under Title 42.
May did see the number of unaccompanied minors who turned themselves over to U.S. law enforcement drop for the second month in a row, 14,158 minors, but still remain high compared to earlier this fiscal year.
May's apprehension numbers bring the total number of those caught this fiscal year to 929,868, with four months left to go. This means Biden's first months in office is on track to oversee a new record of total apprehension from the previous recent high of 977,509 apprehensions in fiscal year 2019.
CBP noted 38 percent of encounters in May 2021 were from, individuals who had at least one prior encounter in the previous 12 months, "compared to an average one-year re-encounter rate of 15 percent for Fiscal Years 2014-2019."
While apprehensions were on a slight increase in early fiscal year 2021, they remained below 100,000 until February 2021. It is also worth noting the number of "got aways," individuals who are known to illegally enter the U.S. but are not caught, are at all-time highs, with estimates of up to 2,000 people a day being able to evade U.S. law enforcement.
The Migrant Protection Protocols, also known as the "Remain in Mexico" policy, was officially ended last month after being paused shortly after Biden became president. There is concern among Border Patrol and local law enforcement if Title 42, the CDC policy that allows Border Patrol to conduct speedy expulsions, is removed.
Vice President Kamala Harris has yet to visit the U.S.-Mexico border, a fact that drew much criticisms and questions during her recent trip to Mexico and Guatemala. When confronted about her avoidance to the area, Harris replied, "And I haven't been to Europe and I mean, I don't understand the point that you're making. I'm not discounting the importance of the border."