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Two illegal migrants, now a missing Texas National Guard soldier trying to rescue from a river, have been involved in “illegal transnational drug trafficking,” officials said Saturday as the search for the missing officer resumed.
The soldier disappeared on Friday after entering a river in Eagle Pass to help two migrants who, according to officials, “seemed to be drowning while illegally crossing the river from Mexico to the United States.”
SOLDIER FROM THE NATIONAL GUARD OF TEXAS CLEARS UPON A MISSION RESCUE MISSION FROM THE RIVER: SOURCES
April 22, 2022: Rescuers search for a missing soldier from the Texas National Guard. (Fox News / Bill Melugin)
A statement from the Texas Department of Defense said that initial reports from Texas Rangers “found that the two migrants were involved in illegal transnational drug trafficking.” Both are in Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody.
The search continued until late Friday, sources told Fox News, saying the incident was being treated as a drowning, with diving teams searching the water as the serviceman was not seen emerging from the river again. The force of the river forced search and rescue teams to stop diving operations late Friday, but the search resumed on Saturday.
In a statement, the Texas Department of Defense said it had managed to notify the family of the missing soldier Friday night and that additional information, including the soldier’s name, would be released later.
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“The search for the missing TMD soldier will continue until we have exhausted all available resources,” the statement said. “The Texas Department of War is grateful to all interdepartmental partners for their continued support in this operation to find our missing soldier. Our thoughts and prayers remain with the soldier’s family.
On Friday, R-Texas spokesman Tony Gonzalez tweeted an image of the guard’s armor, which he reportedly removed before jumping into the water.
“Please pray for the families of all those affected,” Gonzalez tweeted.
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The National Guard soldier has been assigned to Operation Lone Star, Texas, to raise resources to fight the southern border crisis.
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