EXCLUSIVE: Callous Cartel Human Smugglers Lock Migrants in 100-Degree-Plus Texas Rail Cars

For the second time in recent weeks, Del Rio Sector Border Patrol agents found illegal aliens locked inside freight cars as temperatures in the region continue to exceed 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The latest incident involved three illegal aliens locked in a hot freight-train auto hauler with no means of escape.

On Monday, agents assigned to the Uvalde Border Patrol Station conducted a search for illegal aliens on rail cars at a freight train siding near Knippa, Texas. The corridor is a major freight route between the U.S.-Mexico border and San Antonio. The arduous task involves daily searches of hundreds of freight cars carrying sealed containers, grain, rock material from stone quarries, autos, and industrial goods.

While searching one rail car, a Border Patrol canine team detected the scent of concealed humans within a locked freight car transporting newly assembled automobiles from Mexico. Agents inspected the rail car and discovered three illegal aliens locked inside with no means of escape — a desperate tactic agents say is used by smugglers and that all too frequently results in tragedy.

Agents determined the occupants of the sealed rail car included one illegal alien from Mexico, one from Nicaragua, and another from Honduras. Agents transported the group to the Uvalde Station and processed them for removal.

Just weeks earlier, on August 30, agents rescued another group of eight illegal aliens locked within another automobile hauler at the same rail car inspection site.

In that incident, one member of the eight illegal aliens rescued by agents was a child. The group, composed of three Mexican nationals, three Salvadorans, one Guatemalan, and one Chinese national, was also locked in with no means of escape.

Del Rio Sector Chief Patrol Agent Anthony “Scott” Good commented on the risks faced by the illegal aliens locked within the freight cars, saying, “Attempts to make illegal entry via trains have historically had tragic results. This is the second time in two weeks our agents have rescued smuggled humans locked in a rail car at this location.”

Earlier this year, 11 alleged human smugglers were indicted for the deaths of seven illegal aliens who were trapped in a rail car near the Texas border with Mexico, Breitbart Texas’ Bob Price reported.

Price reported that a federal grand jury in Del Rio handed down the multi-count indictments against the 11 defendants for their alleged roles in a human smuggling operation that led to the deaths of seven illegal aliens, according to a statement from the Department of Justice. The 11 defendants include seven foreign nationals from Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico.

Rescues and apprehensions on rail cars dropped dramatically as strict immigration policies enacted by the Trump administration have significantly reduced illegal crossings. In the Del Rio Sector, illegal alien apprehensions fell to fewer than 1,000 per month during fiscal year 2026 — down from a high of more than 70,000 in December 2023.

Despite the record high temperatures in the region, the concealment method is likely a sign of desperation by cartel smugglers finding the border increasingly more difficult to push human cargo across. Smugglers face an even tougher situation: a Border Patrol agency staffed at a higher level than at any time in its more than 100-year history.

As reported by Breitbart Texas, in late June, CBP announced that the United States Border Patrol had reached the historic milestone of 21,271 agents serving on the front lines of the nation’s borders.

Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol.  Before his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @RandyClarkBBTX.