The Department of Justice (DOJ) is drafting a plan that would bar asylum seekers who crossed the US border illegally from getting asylum, according to a new report from Vox.

But a US Border Patrol agent who operates in McAllen and along the Rio Grande River in Texas recently told Business Insider that smugglers force some asylum seekers to cross illegally, calling into question the DOJ's plan.

"If these [immigrants and asylum seekers] go through these port of entries then the smuggler isn't getting paid," the Border Patrol agent said.

The Department of Justice is drafting a plan that would bar asylum seekers who crossed the US border illegally from getting asylum, according to a new report from Vox.

The DOJ's plan would even make it more difficult for Central Americans fleeing gang violence to qualify for asylum, Vox reported.

Because of President Donald Trump's new zero-tolerance policy, asylum seekers who cross illegally are already referred for prosecution instead of being sent to the ports of entry, which can delay and complicate the asylum process.

But a US Border Patrol agent who operates in the McAllen sector along the Rio Grande River in Texas recently told Business Insider that smugglers sometimes force some asylum seekers to cross illegally.

A Border Patrol agent speaks with Central American immigrant families who crossed into the United States seeking asylum on April 14, 2016 in Roma, Texas. Getty Images

"The main reason is because the smuggling organizations control the border," the agent, Rene Quintanillar, told Business Insider. "So anytime [smugglers] see somebody that's not from that area, they'll flag them ... they'll start charging to get through their areas."

"If these [immigrants and asylum seekers] go through these port of entries then the smuggler isn't getting paid," Quintanilla said.

The smugglers don't see the immigrants as individuals, Quintanilla said. They're "seen as a commodity and that's money [the smugglers are] losing if they're going to the port of entries," Quintanilla said.

But "every case varies," Quintanilla said.

Smugglers sometimes even go into other countries to "seek for these individuals who want to leave," Quintanilla said.

"Some of these [immigrants and asylum seekers] have never even left their country, have never even left the area they're from," Quintanilla said. "So they don't know the routes, they don't know anything on how to get anywhere."