At least 240,256 foreign nationals were apprehended or reported evading capture after illegally entering the southwest border in May, according to preliminary data obtained by The Center Square.
“Gotaways” refers to those known and reported to illegally enter the U.S. primarily between ports of entry, who intentionally evade capture by law enforcement and don’t return to Mexico. In May, gotaways totaled at least 60,327, with the greatest numbers reported in the El Paso and Tucson sectors as they have nearly every month this year. CBP doesn’t publicly report gotaway data.
The preliminary data was obtained by The Center Square from a U.S. Border Patrol agent. The agent provided the information on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation; it only includes Border Patrol data and excludes Office of Field Operations data. The total numbers would be higher if OFO data were included. All CBP data would be higher if gotaways were included in official data publicized.