(NewsNation) — Some migrants from countries the United States has pegged as being “of special interest” are using fake passports so they have an easier time getting into the United States.
Countries that are designated as being of particular interest are those such as Russia, North Korea, China, Cuba and Pakistan, which don’t give the United States access to databases. Migrants trying to cross from these places usually experience extra vetting at the border as a result.
A new alert from Border Patrol sent out around the Yuma Sector of Arizona says two Pakistani nationals were encountered over the weekend. These nationals were caught using passports from the Republic of South Africa that didn’t belong to them.
One was deemed an inconclusive match on a terrorist screening database. This means that the National Targeting Center is unable to determine if the individual encountered is a match to one on the watchlist, so he’ll need additional vetting.
Both individuals said that their original passports were taken. The fake ones were provided by their human smuggler, who was operating between South Africa and Pakistan. The men said they were told they should not use their Pakistani passports.
National security experts say this latest development is especially concerning given the relationship between Pakistan and Iran.
“It’s very concerning that people from Pakistan are trying to use these documents,” NewsNation national security contributor Tracy Walder, a former CIA officer and FBI agent, said. “Because at the beginning of September, if folks remember, we arrested (Asif) Merchant, an individual who actually came in from the Canadian border … at the behest of the Iranians, trying to assassinate either President (Joe) Biden or former President (Donald) Trump. That was his mission here in the United States.”
This all brings up questions about the vetting process for migrants — or lack thereof. More than 160 nationalities crossed the southern border over the last 3 1/2 years, and a lot of those countries don’t have viable records or databases. Others just don’t play well with the United States.
The alert sent out to Border Patrol indicates there are a large number of people from Pakistan in South Africa right now, but it is unclear if they will head to the southern border. However, one of the Pakistani nationals interviewed says that they met at least 10 others from Pakistan in Mexico who intended to cross the southern border. Individuals from Pakistan are attempting to cross into California, the alert said, as they claim it’s easier to be released there.
The agency is now asking that people encountered at the border with a South African passport be referred for additional interviews and screening.
“Once again, we’re seeing how bad actors are taking advantage of the Biden-Harris administration’s open-borders policies, which have jeopardized our public safety and national security,” House Homeland Security Committee Chair Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn., said in a statement. “It is nearly impossible for Border Patrol agents to truly vet and screen the record number of illegal border crossers under Biden and Harris’ policies, many of whom are simply released into the interior anyway — and those trying to cross know it. This new phenomenon of illegal aliens arriving en masse from hostile or outright adversarial nations should trouble every American.”