U.S. Border Patrol agents in Arizona reportedly have been using concertina wire to reinforce sections of the southern border wall near ports of entry.
Agents in Nogales and San Luis have been putting up additional miles of concertina wire, said Justin De La Torre, chief patrol agent of the Border Patrol's Yuma Sector, the Arizona Republic reported.
An additional 14 miles of concertina wire have been installed on top of both primary and secondary fencing along the Arizona-Mexico border, the outlet said.
The circular roll of barbed wire is meant to be a "deterrence" to illicit drugs and individuals crossing the border illegally.
"The way we prevent that from happening in the first place is to ensure that there's a very high likelihood that people who try to do that are not successful," De La Torre said.
Border Patrol agents have focused on sections of the fence in proximity to dense urban areas. One such location is a truck depot a few hundred feet from the border wall in Nogales.
"We have seconds to minutes to make that apprehension as soon as they come across," said Jose Luis Maheda, the patrol agent in charge at the Nogales station, the Arizona Republic reported. "If we don't make that apprehension in this area here, they go into the semi-trucks, go into a waiting car, and off they go into traffic."
Not everyone in Nogales supports the appearance of concertina wire.
"It's unfortunate that they put it in the interior of the city where it doesn't give a nice view," Nogales Mayor Jorge Maldonado said, 13 News reported.
Migrant encounters continue to decline under President Donald Trump.
Border Patrol agents in Arizona reported 5,620 encounters with people crossing between ports of entry. That's 10 times fewer than the same month a year earlier, according to data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
U.S. troops in San Ysidro, California, were seen installing long posts against the border wall, as well as installing barbed wire, KUSI reported.
The service members were part of an initial wave of military personnel being sent to the southern border under Trump's executive order.
On Feb. 7, the Pentagon has announced the deployment of an additional 1,500 active-duty troops to the U.S. southern border. The deployment brought the total number of active-duty troops at the border to approximately 3,600.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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