Texas CBP Officers Intercept 3 Wanted Fugitives, Missing Juvenile

Brownsville, Texas – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Brownsville port of entry apprehended two men and a woman wanted on outstanding arrest warrants ranging from charges of probation violations to conspiracy to deliver a controlled substance with possession of a firearm by a felon. CBP officers also assisted in the recovery of a missing juvenile in one of four separate enforcement actions over the weekend.

The first arrest took place on April 8, when CBP officers at the Brownsville and Matamoros International Bridge referred 34-year-old Flor Estella Izaguirre, a U.S. citizen and resident of San Benito, Texas, who arrived at the port of entry as a pedestrian, for a secondary examination after a primary database check identified her as a possible match to an active arrest warrant. At secondary a CBP officer further confirmed Izaguirre as the subject of an outstanding arrest warrant from the Harris County sheriff's office. CBP officers arrested Izaguirre and subsequently turned her over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending extradition to Harris County.

The next case, on April 9, at the Gateway International Bridge, a CBP officer at primary encountered a male pedestrian arriving from Mexico. The man, identified as 29-year-old Luis Mario Arcos, a U.S. citizen and resident of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico, was escorted to passport processing after a primary CBP database check by CBP officers revealed he may be a possible match to a wanted person. In CBP secondary, officers determined Arcos to be the person wanted from Houston, Texas, on a probation violation charge in a case involving marijuana possession.

In a separate case on April 9, a primary CBP officer’s use of a CBP database identified a female juvenile as a 16-year-old who was reported as a missing person from the Brownsville, Texas area. CBP officers stopped the juvenile at Veterans’ International Bridge; the 16-year-old girl was subsequently turned over to the Brownsville Police Department.

And on April 10 at the Gateway International Bridge, a CBP officer’s primary inspection of a male pedestrian resulted in the discovery of a possible wanted person. The man, identified as 35-year-old Mauricio Hernandez, a U.S. citizen who resides in San Potosi, Mexico, was escorted to secondary for further examination. In secondary, CBP officers’ queries of Hernandez confirmed the wanted person status from the Cass County Sheriff’s Office in Fargo, N.D. At secondary, a CBP officer further confirmed Mauricio Hernandez as the subject of an outstanding arrest warrant, for conspiracy to deliver a controlled substance with possession of a firearm by a felon. CBP officers arrested Mauricio Hernandez and subsequently turned him over to the custody of the Cameron County sheriff’s office pending extradition to Fargo.

“These interceptions by Brownsville’s CBP officers of wanted/missing persons as they attempt to enter our country show our continued efforts on the frontline to bring fugitives to face their pending charges and assisting authorities in locating missing juveniles. I congratulate our officers for their vigilance, service and diligence in performing our critical mission at our country’s borders," said Michael Freeman, CBP port director at the Brownsville port of entry.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.