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4-year-old ‘OK’ after being dropped from high border wall in San Diego

Published:Tuesday | May 23, 2023 | 5:07 PM
A man gestures as he waits with others to apply for asylum between two border walls Thursday, May 11, 2023, in San Diego. Many of the hundreds of migrants between the walls that separate Tijuana, Mexico from San Diego have been waiting for days to apply for asylum. Pandemic-related US asylum restrictions, known as Title 42, expired on May 11. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A 4-year-old was dropped into the United States from a high border wall with Mexico in a surveillance video that captures a routine — and highly risky — occurrence.

“Remarkably, the child is ok!” Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz tweeted in his caption to the agency's one-minute, 37-second video, which was posted on Twitter on Monday. “Do not trust smugglers!”

The jerky, black-and-white images appear to show the child and one adult being aided by another adult over the wall, which rises as high 30 feet between Tijuana, Mexico, and San Diego, California. Ortiz said agents heard gunfire while tending to the child.

The child came with two adults, all of whom were in Border Patrol custody, agency spokesman Michael Scappechio said Tuesday.

It had not been confirmed if the adults were the child's parents or what nationality they were. It was also unclear if they would be released in the United States to pursue immigration cases or deported.

Attempts to get over the wall happen daily but are less common among children of such young ages, Scappechio said.

Researchers have found sharp increases in deaths and severe injuries associated with trying to overcome the San Diego wall since it was heightened during the Trump administration. 

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