Human smugglers are hiring American teens to transport illegal migrants from the Mexican border into the United States, enticing them with fast cash and promising safety from legal consequences.
Teenage drivers can earn hundreds of dollars per migrant they transport from the Mexican border according to a report by Reuters. A growing number of teenagers from Texas and California are being recruited for trafficking, and the U.S. Border Patrol has even begun recording juvenile driver data since fiscal 2021.
Roughly 25 percent of drivers caught transferring migrants in the Sunland Park-Santa Teresa region of New Mexico were children. Some teens from the area view smuggling as a way to earn extra cash and improve their lives.
…