The illegal crossings is nothing new, but many migrants are now revealing why they’re deciding to cross by the thousands into the United States.

“The whole world knows, it’s all over the news, everyone knows that if we come to the United States they’ll help us,” said Mayra Aguilar, an immigrant from Honduras.

She brought her family of eight with her and turned themselves into Border Patrol agents near Granjeno, Texas.

“We came with nothing, we came by God’s grace and God is so good, look how far he’s brought us,” Aguilar said.

She says the family migrated because they were being extorted by criminal organizations after refusing to cut gang members a portion of their taxi family business profit.

She decided to head to the United States after seeing advertisements on her local news outlets about free opportunities.

“We saw it on the news, television,” Aguilar said.

Our cameras found dozens of immigrants who said the same, they crossed because of Free American services and assistance being advertised in their home countries.

“We were told by the newspaper, that if a father brings his child they would help us here in the United States,” said a Guatemalan man who says he’s a pastor.

He was traveling with his 17-year-old son who said they left because his son received death threats after having a extramarital affair.

Something Border Patrol agent Hermann Rivera says it’s quickly becoming a new trend.

“Now you’re seeing single dads with kids-, it’s unusual but we’re seeing that and they’re taking advantage because they know about the loopholes in our system,” Rivera said.

Because of an overflow at processing centers, if a child is present when illegally crossing, they are released after processing.

Something this man who calls himself Miguel tried to do.

“I brought papers that weren’t mine,” said the immigrant from Guatemala.

He was traveling in a large group of immigrants holding a young child.

Border Patrol agents said the child isn’t his.

“Agents were able to have the man admit to them he was not the father of the child,” Rivera said.

We asked him why he did it.

He admitted he did not bring his own credentials, so needed another way into the country.

“They know bringing a child is going to be the easiest entry into the United States,” Rivera said.

Smugglers are even advertising their prices online, we found multiple posts showing prices depending on the route you’d like to take.

Many even offering services through social media.

One woman from Honduras said she needed to pay the smuggler in order to find a job in the United States to send money back to her family.

“For my family, to go further in life, we just want a better life.”

The Rio Grande Valley Sector continues to lead the nation in illegal crossings and narcotics seizures.



