FILE - In this March 22, 2017, file photo, Antonio Reyes of Brownsville, Texas, stands by the U.S.-Mexico border fence near his home. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd, File) (The Associated Press)
Border agents in Southeast Texas have apprehended more than 100,000 immigrants attempting to enter the United States illegally since the beginning of October, officials said Wednesday.
In a statement, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said its agents in the Rio Grande Valley Sector -- which includes the cities of Brownsville, McAllen and Corpus Christi -- were on pace to apprehend 240,000 illegal aliens for this fiscal year. That would be an increase of approximately 50 percent over the 162,260 migrants apprehended between October 2017 and October 2018.
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"RGV Sector leads the nation in illegal alien apprehensions, [and] accounts for nearly 50 [percent] of all [arrests] along the entire Southwest border," said the statement, which added that agents were apprehending illegal aliens at a rate of approximately 1,000 per day.
Authorities added that agents in the sector had apprehended at least 1,300 migrants in two separate mass arrests in the previous two weeks. Most of those arrested are "family units and unaccompanied children from Central and South America," the statement said.
Congressional negotiators agreed earlier this month to fund 55 miles of border barriers in the Rio Grande Valley sector. The new wall will be built on the western side of the sector, where officials say approximately 90 percent of arrests take place. The sector has a total of 55 miles of existing barrier on its eastern side.
Fox News' Griff Jenkins and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
