Law enforcement officers working through Texas’ border security mission, Operation Lone Star, are continuing to pursue and apprehend human smugglers – including a notorious coyote called “the joker.”
Their efforts also highlight the ongoing problem law enforcement and local residents are dealing with: crime committed by gotaways.
In one recent example, a driver of a work truck led Texas DPS officers on a high-speed vehicle pursuit. At one point, the driver stopped to let nine male Hispanics bail out of the truck in a residential area. It’s unclear if they were ever apprehended.
DPS troopers pursued the driver. Their goal is to catch human smugglers, law enforcement officers have explained to The Center Square. Multiple troopers engaged in pursuit. One deployed a tire deflation device, causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle. The driver, from Laredo, was arrested and charged with smuggling of persons and evading arrest.
Those who escaped are referred to as “gotaways” by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. They are primarily single, military-age men who illegally enter the U.S., intentionally seeking to evade capture by law enforcement and make their way into the interior of the U.S.
