SAN DIEGO (CNS) - More than 200 migrants were detained near Imperial
Beach over the past week for allegedly attempting to enter the United States
illegally, Border Patrol officials said today, with the majority of them coming from Brazil.

Officials say 224 people were detained for crossing into the United States in two separate incidents near Imperial Beach.

The first incident on Saturday involved 123 migrants who Border Patrol
agents encountered at around 6:40 p.m., which officials said was the
largest migrant group encountered locally since November, when 144 people were
detained in Imperial Beach.

At about 1:45 a.m. Tuesday, 101 migrants were found inside a drainage
tube at the international boundary. In Tuesday's incident, the Border Patrol
said smugglers used a blow torch to cut through bars in the tube, which allowed
the migrants to cross through.

Border Patrol officials said the migrants were citizens of 13
different countries, the majority of whom -- 183 people -- were from Brazil.
The groups included 167 adults and 57 people who were traveling with their
families.