EXCLUSIVE — Border Patrol’s South Florida region for the first time rivals regions across southern border states, such as Texas, Arizona, or California, for the most illegal immigrant arrests.As illegal immigrant apprehensions along the U.S.-Mexico border have slowed to historic lows under President Donald Trump and the Department of Homeland Security has focused its enforcement efforts inside the country, Border Patrol’s Miami Sector is among the organization’s top 20 regions for illegal immigrant encounters.Between March 2025 and April 2026, Border Patrol agents apprehended 125,199 foreigners across the Mexican, Canadian, and coastal borders.
Ten percent — or 12,599 — of all arrests occurred in the Miami region, according to Customs and Border Protection data.
Although the majority of arrests made by Border Patrol agents on the U.S.-Mexico border are people who attempt to enter the country illegally, those being arrested in South Florida are largely individuals turned over to Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement from local and state police.
In the past, Florida state troopers who pulled over a vehicle with illegal immigrants inside could not bring those individuals to federal agents.
