By Staff
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers arrested a 24-year-old man with U.S. citizenship after they discovered four Chinese immigrants stuffed in the trunk of his car.
“Concealing persons in vehicles is dangerous and could have severe consequences,” said Pete Flores, Director of Field Operations for CBP in San Diego, in a March 16 news release.
The suspect entered the San Ysidro border crossing driving a 2014 Chrysler 200 on March 14. While his car was at the booth for inspection, a dog alerted officers to something suspicious. Officers examined the vehicle’s trunk and found three women and one man, all Chinese nationals, inside.
A photo taken moments after agents opened the trunk shows one woman in a purple T-shirt lying on her side facing the opening of the trunk, while another woman in a gray T-shirt has her left leg draped over her neighbor, with her face pressed against the first woman’s knees.
Officers escorted the four to a secure location for further processing, and seized the Chrysler.
The driver was booked into the Metropolitan Correctional Center to await arraignment on federal charges related to human smuggling.