Border Patrol said agents responded to five car chases over an 11-hour period including one that ended with a vehicle engulfed in flames.
In a news release Thursday, the agency said the chases started Wednesday and ended Thursday morning with agents arresting 49 people.
The first chase described in the release happened Wednesday when McAllen Border Patrol agents responded to a concerned citizen’s call about possible migrants being loaded into a vehicle near Mission.
Agents responded and tried to conduct a traffic stop on a van matching the description and a chase ensued, according to the release.
A U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations helicopter was called to assist and the chase eventually ended in Pharr where several people ran from the vehicle.
Border Patrol said agents arrested 15 people who were from Mexico, Honduras and El Salvador, but were unable to locate the driver.
Around the same time, Border Patrol said agents were pursuing a Ford Flex on U.S. Highway 281 near San Manuel, which ended when the driver drove through a ranch fence and several people ran into the brush.
While agents were searching the area, the vehicle caught fire, according to the release, which said agents apprehended one person and that the driver was not located.
About 40 minutes later, Border Patrol agents tried to stop a Chevrolet Equinox on U.S. Highway 77 near Norias when the driver led agents on a pursuit.
The release said the Equinox veered off the road through a property gate and came to a stop where multiple people fled.
Border Patrol said seven people were arrested, but the driver was not located.
On Thursday morning, Border Patrol agents were in another pursuit on Highway 281 near San Manuel with a Ford F-150 that eventually veered off the road and came to a stop.
People ran from the vehicle and agents arrested five people in the country illegally, according to the release, which said the driver was again not found.
“Moments later, RGV agents observed several subjects loading into a vehicle near Escobares,” the release said.
Border Patrol conducted a stop on a white Chevrolet Suburban, which came to a stop before the driver ran into a nearby neighborhood. According to the release, agents found 21 people cramped inside the vehicle but did not find the driver.
