Border Patrol apprehensions of illegal immigrants at the northern U.S. border have jumped from 916 in fiscal year 2021 to 10,021 in fiscal 2023.
HIGHGATE, Vt.—At dawn or dusk, Kristy Brow used to enjoy alone time walking in the woods on her 21-acre property in Highgate, Vermont, a small rural town near the U.S.–Canada border.
Lately, however, she’s cautious—she’s worried about potential encounters with illegal immigrants along the remote logging trail.
“I don’t go out by myself anymore—especially at night,” said Mrs. Brow, who runs a dog obedience business from her home.
“It’s unsettling. You can’t feel relaxed anymore,” she said. “You want to be safe in your own house and on your property.
“It’s getting bad. Sometimes, you see them on the interstate, looking for a ride.”
Mrs. Brow and her husband are both avid hunters and have deer stands set up on their property. Their game cameras often record illegal immigrants passing through.
The illegal immigrants travel alone or in small groups, discarding unwanted belongings as they trudge further south into Vermont, headed for destinations unknown.
“We find clothes out here. We found shoes and a bicycle. We see Border Patrol out there on snow dogs following footprints,” Mrs. Brow told The Epoch Times.
Once a place of peace and solitude, she said the woods behind her house are now a shortcut for illegal immigrants.
And it’s only gotten worse since President Joe Biden took office, she said.
In fiscal year 2023, border officials encountered 189,401 illegal and inadmissible immigrants along the U.S.–Canada border, including at the ports of entry. Of those, 10,021 were caught crossing illegally between ports of entry.
In fiscal 2021, that number was 916.
Mrs. Brow’s property falls within the Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) Swanton Sector, a 295-mile stretch of largely unguarded border with Canada.
Swanton Sector Chief Patrol Agent Robert Garcia wrote on social media earlier this month that border agents in his sector apprehended more illegal immigrants in fiscal year 2023 than “the prior 11 fiscal years combined.”
The Swanton Sector encompasses 24,000 square miles and includes all of Vermont and several counties in New Hampshire and New York State.
Traveling on foot in the area is especially challenging during the winter months.
Border officials have encountered illegal immigrants marching across miles of snow-covered wilderness, swamps, muddy fields, and meadows in sub-freezing temperatures.
Many succumb to the elements.
By Allan Stein
