‘Sidewalk Crawler’ Arrested After Trying To Enter US Illegally, Officials Say

In an effort to avoid inspection at a U.S. port of entry, a Mexican woman crawled on the pedestrian lane until she was spotted by another border crosser, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at the Stanton Street Bridge Port of Entry in Downtown El Paso intercepted 43-year-old Herlinda Coronado Magallanes of Juarez, Mexico, as she was crawling north along the pedestrian walkway in her attempt to enter the U.S. illegally, officials said.

“The CBP inspection process at area ports of entry is thorough and extensive, and some people will go to extreme measures in an attempt to circumvent the normal entry process,” said Hector Mancha, El Paso port director for CBP.

The apprehension was made about 6:20 a.m. Friday after another border crosser alerted CBP officers. When she was spotted by border officers, Magallenes tried to flee back into Mexico, officials said. Officers also determined that she had been previously removed from the U.S.

Magallanes was arrested on suspicion of illegal entry. She was booked into the El Paso County Jail and is being held without bond.

“The motorist who alerted CBP should be commended,” Mancha said. “Community members and law enforcement personnel working closely together can help maintain El Paso’s ranking as one of the safest large cities in the U.S.”

In addition to the alleged “sidewalk crawler,” an additional 48 immigration violations were reported during the weekend at other ports of entry in El Paso, West Texas and New Mexico. According to a news release, border officers stopped 24 intended immigrants, eight impostors, seven people who entered the U.S. without proper examination, six false claims to U.S. citizenship and three counterfeit or altered documents.

There were also nine seizures of prohibited food and agricultural items this week, resulting in $1,750 in fines being assessed. The prohibited items seized included ham, pork rinds, lard, apples, avocados, guavas and tangerines.

CBP officers working at area ports also made three marijuana seizures, apprehended five fugitives, and identified one export violation this weekend.