More than 200 illegal aliens were transferred to the custody of Customs and Border Patrol last week, with the wave of arrests coming as authorities moved upon a human smuggling ring operating in the Laredo, Texas area.

Border Patrol agents most recently recounted finding 25 people hiding within a horse trailer at an immigration checkpoint on Thursday. They’ve encountered other smuggling attempts with the use of commercial tractor-trailers, box trucks, agriculture and fuel containers, and a travel trailer. CBP has reported making 242 arrests last week alone, a figure not seen since before the coronavirus pandemic.

At least two of the men arrested by CBP for attempting to unlawfully enter the country have outstanding arrest warrants for sex crimes in the United States, one of which is said to have targeted a minor. Both of these suspects are currently facing extradition proceedings for their alleged crimes.

The south Texas city appears to have become a hub for cartel-affiliated human smuggling, which has resumed in force following a lull during the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. CBP and the Webb County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant on a human smuggling stash house in the city last month, in which 47 illegal aliens were being stashed.

The freeze on illegal immigration that resulted from the coronavirus pandemic appears to largely be over, with criminal smuggling groups now once again attempting to move large groups of unlawful aliens into the United States. It’s very likely that smuggling organizations will attempt to move their customers across the southern border in a greatly increased capacity if Joe Biden is inaugurated in January. The Democrat candidate has already confirmed he only intends to deport illegal aliens who are convicted of a violent felony, which would largely abandon the enforcement of American immigration law.