The newest surge in illegal immigration from Mexico did not slow in August, as expected, and now is on the verge of breaking the 2014 record, driven by deported migrants eager to return and illegals paying smugglers extra money for VIP services, according to a new report from the border.

"FY2016 has already seen the second highest number of apprehensions in the last five years, and will likely come close to or even exceed the number of apprehensions as the crisis year of 2014," said the report from two immigration experts for the Wilson Center who recently return from a border tour to conduct interviews with immigrants.



What was surprising, said the report, is that the expected slowdown in illegal immigration in August, when the heat typically drives people away, didn't occur.

"Central Americans continue to arrive at the U.S.-Mexico border in surprising numbers. While they have not yet surpassed the peak of fiscal year 2014, August 2016 had the highest number of [unaccompanied children] and family unit apprehensions of any August in the past five years including 2014. Normally, apprehensions begin to decline in August because of the heat and the reduced demand for seasonal labor in the U.S. – which makes the increased apprehension numbers this August surprising," said the report.

The report said that economic opportunity in the United States continues to drive illegal immigration as did the desire by those deported to get back to their life, and families, in America.

"All spoke of families they have left in the U.S. and their determination to return to take care of their children and restart their lives," said the report of those interviewed in the border regions.

The report, titled "Migrant Smuggling and Trafficking at the Rio Grande Valley," provided a sometimes jarring description of the smuggling operations illegals utilize to get into the United States.

Migrants pay about $6,000-$8,000 for help to get into the United States.

But it added that some pay twice for "VIP services" that will make repeated attempts to cross the border and even help get illegal immigrants deep into the United States.

Photo: Wilson Center.

"The smugglers offer the migrants logistical support and intelligence. Their services include transportation networks, moving from place to place northward to the border based on the smugglers' sense of the securest route," said the report.

It added: "Depending on the kind of service provided the cost can run between $6,000 and $8,000, with some VIP services costing double with a guarantee of several attempts at crossing the border and safe passage to a major city in the U.S. But the majority of migrants seem to pay to be brought to the U.S.-Mexico border, taken to a crossing point, and sometimes helped across the river."

Read the full Wilson Center report here.

Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner's "Washington Secrets" columnist, can be contacted at pbedard@washingtonexaminer.com