Federal officials apprehended, expelled, or deemed 172,300 people inadmissible at the southern border in March, the highest number of encounters since at least October 2012.
An increase in migrants trying to cross into the US from the southern border is drawing political attention to immigration issues. The March 2021 figures are 10 times higher than the 17,100 encounters recorded in April 2020. The rise comes after steep declines in border activity during the coronavirus pandemic.
