Border Patrol reveals the SUV involved in fatal crash that killed 13 people drove through a hole in the Mexican border fence an hour before
Authorities have revealed that an SUV involved in a deadly crash in California on Tuesday had snuck across the US-Mexican border an hour before
The 25 people in the SUV were among 44 who had driven through a hole in the border fence just before 6am
The SUV and a Chevrolet Suburban were caught on surveillance footage
The Chevrolet Suburban caught on fire a short time later
Border patrol agents responding to the fire found 19 people hiding nearby
March 3, 2021 Share
Authorities are investigating whether human smuggling was involved after a crash Tuesday involving an SUV packed with 25 people and a tractor-trailer that left 13 people dead and bodies strewn across a roadway near the U.S. Mexico border.
Most of the dead were Mexicans, a Mexican official said.
When police arrived, some of the passengers were trying to crawl out of the crumpled 1997 Ford Expedition while others were wandering around the fields. The rig’s front end was pushed into the SUV’s left side and two empty trailers were jackknifed behind it.
Twelve people were found dead when first responders reached the two-lane highway, which winds through fields in the agricultural southeastern corner of California about 125 miles (201 kilometers) east of San Diego. Another person died at a hospital, California Highway Patrol Chief Omar Watson said.
The Border Patrol says the 13 people killed in the Southern California crash were among more than 40 migrants who entered the U.S. from Mexico as part of a human smuggling operation.
Surveillance video showed a Ford Expedition and Chevrolet Suburban drive through the opening early Tuesday, said Gregory Bovino, the Border Patrol’s El Centro sector chief.