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In August, the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General issued a report revealing that the administration has lost track of over 300,000 unaccompanied minors. Many of these children were handed over to sponsors in the U.S. without proper background checks, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation.
Texas Department of Public Safety Lieutenant Chris Olivarez highlighted this issue during an appearance on Newsmax’s On the Record With Greta Van Susteren. He described the situation as dire, particularly for the unaccompanied minors who make the dangerous journey to the border.
“This has always been a very tragic situation when we talk about children and those that are coming across the border,” Olivarez said. “Those special interest immigrants, think about their journey where they’re coming from through various countries across the globe, and just it’s no different with children.”
One of the most alarming aspects of the border crisis is the rise in human trafficking. Children attempting to cross the border illegally from Central and South America often fall victim to traffickers in Mexico. Olivarez noted that these minors are transported or smuggled across the border into the U.S., making the situation even more dangerous.
“Children are making this long journey as well from Central and South America,” Olivarez continued. “And then they get to Mexico, and then from Mexico they get transported or smuggled across the border between a port of entry. So, it’s a very dire situation when it comes to children.”
Texas authorities find their hands tied when dealing with unaccompanied minors, as immigration remains a federal issue. State officials can only act if they see signs of abuse or if a child speaks out about their exploitation.
“Our interaction as a state agency is very brief with these children,” Olivarez stated. “All we can do is document what we see, and if we see any signs of abuse or exploitation, or if a child makes an outcry to one of us saying that they have been abused, then we can do something at the state level. But our interaction is very brief.”
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The federal immigration system, already overwhelmed, struggles to process the unaccompanied minors who survive human trafficking and reach Texas. After Texas law enforcement documents the children and their belongings, they are handed over to U.S. Border Patrol. What happens next remains a mystery, as the system fails to track their whereabouts.
“All we can do is document what we see, document everything these children have with them, and then turn them over to Border Patrol,” Olivarez added. “And from there, we don’t know exactly where they end up.”
In many cases, children arrive at the border with contact information for a sponsor in the U.S. However, the legitimacy of these sponsors is often unknown due to a lack of proper vetting. This opens the door for unaccompanied minors to become victims of sex and labor trafficking, exacerbating an already critical issue.
“All we can do is try to document or look for any type of signs of abuse,” Olivarez emphasized. “But as you mentioned, these sponsors, we don’t know exactly who these sponsors are. There’s no vetting on these sponsors. And that’s why you do have these children that are exposed to sex and labor trafficking.”
The failure of the Biden-Harris administration to effectively address the border crisis, particularly the surge in unaccompanied minors, has placed Kamala Harris under intense scrutiny. Lieutenant Olivarez pointed out the need for immediate federal intervention to curb the growing human trafficking problem.
Kamala Harris’s refusal to fully engage in her responsibilities as “Border Czar” has, in the eyes of many critics, led to a worsening of the crisis. As children continue to fall victim to traffickers, the pressure mounts on Harris to take swift and decisive action to protect those most vulnerable.
The border crisis shows no signs of slowing down, and without a strong response from federal authorities, the situation will only become more dire for unaccompanied minors and the communities impacted by this growing humanitarian disaster.
