Turkish ‘special interest’ migrant tells Texas troopers he paid $12K to cross into US illegally

Texas state troopers encountered 36 illegal immigrants near the southern border Friday, including a group from Turkey who said they each paid $12,000 to cross illegally in an effort to meet a “sponsor” in New Jersey, authorities said. 

Troopers found the group in the border town of Normandy, the Texas Department of Public Safety said. 

Fifteen of the migrants, from Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic and South Africa, were arrested on suspicion of criminal trespass. 

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Among the group were so-called “special interest” illegal immigrants from Turkey, Pakistan, India and Vietnam. Special interest migrants are non-U.S. citizens who potentially pose a national security risk to the U.S. or its interests based on their travel patterns, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). 

The designation doesn’t mean the people are “terrorists,” but their travel and behavior indicates a possible link to nefarious activity, including terrorism, that requires further screening and investigation, DHS says on its website. 

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“In the last 48 hours, DPS Troopers have come across 8 special interest immigrants from 5 different countries in the rural Normandy area,” DPS Lt. Chris Olivarez posted on X.

Of the 36 migrants caught Friday, 21 were handed off to U.S. Border Patrol. 

In the group of Turkish migrants, one 26-year-old man interviewed by authorities said he found a “network” on Telegram and Instagram to help them cross illegally into the U.S. 

He told investigators they had a sponsor in New Jersey.

“They take care of our expenses and everything while we are in there legally,” he was heard saying on DPS bodycam footage posted online.