Sunland Park grapples with record-breaking migrant border crossings

SUNLAND PARK, New Mexico (KVIA) -- An eight-mile stretch of border, between Mount Cristo Rey and the Santa Teresa Port of Entry, is among the busiest and most heavily-trafficked areas for undocumented immigrants in the Southwest U.S.

Sunland Park and Anapra, Mexico are at the heart of this area.

"We kind of have to pick and choose how much we can help them," Sunland Park Police Officer Edwin Gallardo said. "There’s a spike in the amount of calls coming in. Most of them have been migrant-related."

The five-year veteran of the force said this summer's surge in illegal crossings has stretched the police department's resources.

"It's happened where a group of migrants get scared so they split. We're talking about 20s and 30s," he said, "You have 30 calls, 30 neighbors calling at the same time 'hey I need some help.'"

In Fiscal Year 2020, Border Patrol encountered 54,396 migrants in the El Paso Border Patrol Sector. The sector includes a small portion of West Texas and the entire state of New Mexico.

The Santa Teresa Border Patrol Station Area of Responsibility stretches from Mount Cristo Rey to the Columbus Port of Entry -- roughly 65 miles of border. For Fiscal Year 2021 (as of August), agents had encountered 81,096 migrants. The vast majority of those migrants have crossed near Sunland Park

Sunland Park police officers can't legally get involved with migrant-related calls unless a municipal law is being broken. In most instances, officers are called out for trespassing.

"[Residents] don’t know whether they pose a danger or not. They don’t know what their intentions are. We can speculate that their journey is just to come for the start of a new life. I’m assuming that’s their main goal. But evidently, to the community, as they witness it first hand, front-row seat, they do not know," he said.

ABC-7 spent three different days with Officer Gallardo during the summer, riding-along as he patrolled the city.

In one instance, a group of more than a dozen migrants was apprehended right next to a school bus. High schoolers were waiting to be picked up.

"If they get into that bus, you're just waiting for a catastrophe to happen," Gallardo said.

Gallardo's job is to protect Sunland Park, but he understands the hardships migrants have to go through on their journeys. He recounts a conversation he had with a woman who was recently apprehended by agents.

"She was broken down. The only thing she said was, 'I'm gonna come back. I'm gonna make it. I'm gonna come over and make my dream,' and she just broke down crying," Gallardo said.

In Anapra, Mexico, people ABC-7 spoke with also described the increase in crossings they've seen this summer. One woman, whose home is just a few yards away from the border wall, said she's seen triple the number of migrants walking through her neighborhood.

"It doesn't bother me. I see migrants as if they were anyone else. They're just looking to make a better future," she said in Spanish.

Juan Rodriguez's home is even closer to the border wall.

"I've seen migrants climbing the fence. Some have even fallen down," he said. "I don't mind them coming through though. They're just looking to make a little more money in the U.S."

Even though Sunland Park has had to grapple with this unprecedented surge, Gallardo said he's happy to work in such a unique community.

"The stress level can be high. Ultimately, this is what we signed up for. This is what we love to do and this is a calling," he said.