SAN ANTONIO, Texas (Washington Insider Magazine) – In a possible case of human trafficking, at least 46 individuals were discovered dead inside a tractor-trailer in San Antonio, according to officials on Monday.
Following what authorities described as a mass casualty event, 12 adults and 4 children were transferred to local hospitals.
According to San Antonio Police Chief Bill McManus, a nearby worker discovered the trailer with the doors only half open and many dead people inside at around 5:50 p.m. local time.
According to authorities, while it was a refrigerated tractor-trailer, neither water nor an air conditioner could be seen to be in use.
According to San Antonio Fire Department Chief Charles Hood, the victims who were taken to nearby hospitals were all hot to touch and suffered from heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
Officials announced that three persons are in jail and that this is now a federal probe.
A representative for Immigration and Customs Enforcement told ABC News that Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) responded to a report about an alleged human trafficking incident on Monday and confirmed the deaths of more than 40 persons when they arrived at the location.
The event is being investigated as a possible case of human trafficking, Homeland Security Investigations, the division of ICE in charge of dismantling trafficking networks, announced in a statement.
According to San Antonio Fire-Rescue, CBP and HSI are assuming control of the probe from local San Antonio officials.
Chris Magnus, the commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, described the episode as horrifying.
The U.S. Border Patrol, which arrived to offer assistance at the incident and is assisting ICE in the federal investigation, is housed under CBP.
Alejandro Mayorkas, the secretary of homeland security, said that the awful loss of lives had him “heartbroken.”
In connection with the Summit of the Americas held in Los Angeles earlier in the month, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) provided further information on the Biden administration’s initiatives to stop irregular migration and human trafficking.
The Western Hemisphere has seen a number of operations undertaken as part of the greatest crackdown on human trafficking ever conducted in the region, which has seen over 1,300 personnel deployed and over 2,000 traffickers detained in only 2 months.
To disrupt smuggling activities in real-time and deplete the financial resources of the transnational criminal organizations that plan and carry out these crimes, agencies from throughout the government, including the intelligence agencies and the U.S. Treasury Department, have joined forces.
Image via ABC News