An illegal immigrant on the terrorist watchlist was arrested on Tuesday in Brooklyn, New York. The terrorist watchlist suspect was previously detained in Texas after illegally crossing the southern border between the United States and Mexico; however, he was later released into the United States and traveled to New York.
In a Tuesday post on X, formerly Twitter, U.S. Border Patrol Chief Jason Owens shared a picture of the illegal immigrant suspect and wrote, “A multi-agency effort led to the arrest of a South African national and suspected terrorist in Brooklyn, NY.”
The Border Patrol chief explained that the South African national was previously detained for criminal trespassing in Texas and was released into the United States “based on information available at the time.”
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“A further subsequent investigation revealed a positive match on the terrorist watchlist, prompting swift action by USBP agents and personnel at the National Targeting Center,” Owens added. “Thanks to the coordination of multiple agencies, this potential threat was located, taken into custody, and is now pending removal.”
An official with the Texas Department of Public Safety told Fox News that the South African national was arrested in September on a ranch located near Eagle Pass, Texas, and was turned over to the U.S. Border Patrol prior to his release into the United States.
Fox News reported that the South African national was initially taken into custody as part of a group of 36 illegal immigrants discovered in the Normandy, Del Rio Sector.
In September, Lt. Chris Olivarez, a Department of Public Safety spokesman, shared a video and pictures of the group of illegal immigrants in a post on X. Olivarez noted that some of the illegal immigrants arrested in the Normandy, Del Rio Sector were “special interest illegal immigrants” from India, Pakistan, Turkey, and Vietnam.
