Border Patrol officials in El Paso say that previously deported criminal aliens and gang members are attempting to sneak back into the U.S. by hiding in the large groups of Central American migrants. All migrants go through a biometric background investigation as part of the processing of the groups at the border.

During a five-day period ending on June 13, Border Patrol agents in the El Paso Sector apprehended five previously deported criminal aliens and gang members who attempted to cross illegally into the U.S. by hiding with groups of migrants, according to information provided by Border Patrol officials.

On June 13, El Paso Station agents apprehended a group of 17 migrants near the downtown area, officials stated. During a biometric background investigation, the agents learned that one of the migrants, 33-year-old Celso Alexander Portillo-River, a Salvadoran national, has an extensive criminal history in the U.S. His records included a four-year prison sentence for second degree robbery in California. Immigration officers removed the criminal alien from the U.S. in 2016, the report states. He now faces new federal charges for illegal re-entry after removal.

One day earlier, agents assigned to the Deming Station working near Hachita, New Mexico, disrupted a human smuggling attempt. The agents reportedly arrested five migrants. During the intake process, agents identified Jose Eduarto Rodriguez-Aguire, a 27-year-old male from Mexico. The man identified himself as a long-time member of the Latin Kings gang. He said he joined the gang when we was 11-years-old. Rodriguez-Aguire also had tattoos which confirmed his gang membership. With a previous deportation on his record, he now also faces a felony charge of illegal re-entry after removal.

That same day, Lordsburg Station agents identified another criminal alien who illegally re-entered the U.S. The agents reported the man to be a Mexican national with a previous conviction from Eagle, Colorado, for “homicide murder-2-attempt.” He pleaded guilty and received a sentence of 10 years in state prison. Immigration officers removed him from the U.S. and returned him to Mexico. He will face prosecution for illegal re-entry as an aggravated felon.

Agents found a female criminal alien near El Paso on June 11. Officials identified the woman as 33-year-old Tatiana Elizabeth Gomez de Varela, a Salvadoran national. Records who the woman has an extensive criminal history that includes possession and transportation of firearms, drug smuggling, and bringing prohibited items into a penal institution. She also faces felony charges for illegal re-entry after removal.

Alamagordo Station agents were processing a group of apprehended migrants on June 11 when they identified a Guatemalan male with a criminal history. Officials said that Luis Fernando Godoy-Chavirria had an arrest in 1987 in his home country for homicide. His criminal history from Guatemala was discovered by the El Paso Sector Foreign Operations Branch that specialized in searching foreign criminal databases to find migrants with criminal histories. He now faces a charge in the U.S. for illegal entry.

Finally, on June 9, a Border Patrol agent working the line on a border highway near Ascarte Park spotted three people who had just illegally crossed the border into the U.S. The agent began questioning the three men when all three began to assault the agent. The agent managed to arrest two of the three migrants. Officials contacted the FBI who charged the two illegal aliens with assaulting a federal agent. The two men are being held in the El Paso County jail pending prosecution for the alleged assault.

In addition to all of that, agents from the El Paso Station assisted local officials in the recovery of two bodies from the Franklin Canal. Officials believe the two people drowned in the American Canal which is running at full speed during irrigation season. The El Paso Police Department is investigating the deaths along with the El Paso County Coroner’s Office.