Not all migrants released will have ankle monitors

Many of the hundreds of migrants released to local churches do not have ankle monitors, according to Annunciation House.

“(The federal government) said that there are going to be times when adults are released without ankle monitors,” said Ruben Garcia, with Annunciation House. “They didn’t explain why that might be.”

El Calvario United Methodist Church received 23 legal migrants this week in Las Cruces. They stayed Tuesday night at the church before a family member or friend could buy them a bus ticket to another part of the country.

“Almost always, the adults will have a plastic ankle monitor,” said Pastor George Miller. “This group that came does not.”

Garcia said the government might not have given an explanation, but the migrants heard there was a shortage.

“Explanations that have been given to me for that particular day was, ‘We did run out of ankle monitors locally,'” Garcia told members of the media.