WASHINGTON, April 6 (UPI) -- U.S. Customs and Border Patrol reported that apprehensions at ports of entry along the southern border are down 30 percent.
From Oct. 1 through March 31, CBP Border Patrol agents made 418,184 arrests along the nation's southern border compared to 594,142 apprehensions during the same period last year, according to a press release from the border agency.
All southern border sectors have recorded a decline in apprehensions, but the sectors in Del Rio, Texas, and Yuma, Ariz., experienced the greatest declines, with a decrease of 57 percent in Del Rio and a decrease of 68 percent in Yuma.
The downward trend in the number of apprehensions is more pronounced among "other than Mexico nationals," with 55 percent fewer apprehensions in the second quarter of 2007.
"The decrease in other-than-Mexican apprehensions reduces the time agents spend transporting and processing and increases time spent patrolling the border," the CBP stated.
A spokesperson for the CBP said that the decrease in apprehensions was a result of combined efforts under the agency's Secure Border Initiative, such as increased personnel and improved technology for monitoring the border.
The CBP also reported marked increases in drug seizures at the border, with a total combined value estimated at $1.03 billion. Agents have confiscated more than 1 million pounds of marijuana, a 31 percent increase compared to the same period in 2006. They have also seized 7,275 pounds of cocaine, marking a 122 percent increase from 2006.
