Mexican officials detained nearly 800 undocumented migrants in eastern Mexico in four trucks on Saturday, the government said, in one of the biggest swoops against illegal immigration in recent months.
Mexico’s National Migration Institute (INM) said in a statement late on Saturday that 791 foreign nationals were found in the trucks stopped in the eastern state of Veracruz, confirming earlier reports about a mass detention.
The apprehension came as Mexico steps up efforts to reduce a surge of migrants toward the U.S. border under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, who has vowed to hit Mexican goods with tariffs if Mexico does not stem illegal immigration.
Mexico made a deal on June 7 with the United States to avert the tariffs, setting the clock ticking on a 45-day period for the Mexican government to make palpable progress in reducing the numbers of people trying to cross the U.S. border illegally.
