El Paso, Texas – As of this week, the eight-wheeled armored chariot known as Strykers has been Deploy to the border For more than a decade, it has been part of the Pentagon’s support for customs and border protection.
Fox News exclusively checks out these vehicles and how the U.S. uses them for the first time.
According to the Border Patrol, there are now two Stationed in the El Paso field, More Strykers are expected to be deployed to other parts of the border in the coming weeks.
One of the Strykers can take a bird’s eye view of Juárez in Mexico, a major smuggling corridor known for its large number of “gotaways”, the number of illegal immigrants, who managed to escape the Border Patrol agents.
Under Trump’s sue, the immigration border encountered a fall. Biden’s record high
The military said the seats on the border were not weaponized. (Fox News)
“This is one of the busiest areas in the entire country,” said Hamid Nikseresht, director of special operations at the U.S. Border Patrol.
Usually, these raiders are used in combat and can be equipped with cannons or machine guns to fight the enemy.
However, the Strykers on the border are not equipped with weapons, Military tells Fox News It has no plan to do so.
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Instead, here Strykers are used to assist Border Patrol personnel in surveillance and discover illegal immigrants.
US Army Sergeant: “One of the main things it offers is surveillance capabilities,” said Carlos Zamora. “Once anything happens, we’ll just call the Border Patrol and they roll it up to us and arrest it,” Zamaro said.
The Sprics have an infrared capability of up to two miles and discover illegal immigrants that agents may not see.
The Stricks are supporting the Department of Homeland Security. (Fox News)
“Our purpose is to support the mission of the Department of Homeland Security, and as we do, we have the ability to optically,” said Colonel Chad Campbell of the 1-41 Infantry Battalion. “We all have optics for day and night. We can see far away.”
Large military vehicles are not only used for detection, but also for deterrence.
On Thursday, Border Patrol agents in the El Paso industry reported 32 encounters, compared with 1,134 encounters on the same day in 2024.
As for why these huge and expensive vehicles will be deployed to the border when the numbers reach a few years’ lows, Border Patrol agents say they want to make sure the numbers don’t rise anymore.
Fox News witnessed the deterrence and detection vehicles firsthand. (Fox News)
“The goal is zero,” Nick Serest said. “We’re not there yet, so we’re going to do everything we can to get us to this point and bring us what we might … the way we send that message is better than bringing a 55,000-pound armored vehicle, with detectable, maneuverable capabilities, forcing us to currently outweigh anything else in our Eropertoire?”
Border Patrol agents told Fox News that it is difficult for the cartel to find immigrants to smuggle on the border, as few people want to risk paying thousands of dollars just to be deported.
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“Let me tell you a story we just heard this morning,” Nick Serest said. The two walked up to the fence as if they were about to cross. They lifted up the mountain. They saw the huge vehicle sitting on the top of the mountain, and they turned and walked away, and they walked away. You know what that says is scared.
