Planes full of underage migrants are being secretly flown into suburban areas of New York by the Biden administration in an effort to resettle the massive influx of people coming from the southern border, a new report says.
Charter flights from Texas have been unloading droves of young migrants, as the border crisis has compounded the progress of local immigration officials. Flights have been underway since at least August, sources familiar with the matter told the New York Post.
Two planes were seen last week landing at the Westchester County Airport, with most passengers appearing to be children, teenagers, and some apparent migrants in their 20s. Some of the passengers were later seen with sponsors or relatives in New Jersey or as they were taken to a residential facility on Long Island.
Nearly 2,000 migrants that crossed the U.S. border from Mexico have arrived outside White Plains on 21 flights since Aug. 8, according to an analysis of online flight-tracking information from the outlet. Additional records indicate some of the planes landed between midnight and 6:30 a.m., with two reportedly arriving from Houston at 2:13 a.m. and 4:29 a.m. on Aug. 20, despite a voluntary curfew during that window.
LATE NIGHT FLIGHTS TRANSPORTING MIGRANT CHILDREN TO TENNESSEE RAISE QUESTIONS WITH LAWMAKERS
One of the most recent underage migrant sightings was on Wednesday when reporters witnessed two buses leaving the Westchester airport carrying around 100 passengers who arrived on a McDonnell Douglas MD-83.
Republican New York Rep. Elise Stefanik condemned the discreet protocol Tuesday morning, tweeting, “Joe Biden’s border crisis is out of control! He is now shipping his problem to New York.”
Joe Biden’s border crisis is out of control!
He is now shipping his problem to New York.
Unbelievable.https://t.co/zf4me3WLkq
— Rep. Elise Stefanik (@RepStefanik) October 19, 2021
Television host David Asman also slammed the “secret resettlement of tens of thousands of illegal immigrants in the middle of the night and no cooperation with states.”
“No wonder cartels are now making millions more smuggling people than drugs; they’re partnering with the Biden Administration,” he added in a tweet.
A spokeswoman for Democratic Westchester County Executive George Latimer claimed the situation was “nothing new” and likened it to a policy under former President Donald Trump’s administration.
“This is similar to when HHS, under the Trump administration, housed almost 1 thousand migrant children in Westchester – without the County’s prior knowledge or approval,” spokeswoman Catherine Cioffi wrote in a statement to Fox News. “Then, as opposed to now, there was no outcry by anyone.”
When questioned about the charter program, the White House said the flights only carry children and teenagers. A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson told the Washington Examiner, “It is our legal responsibility to safely care for unaccompanied children until they can be swiftly unified with a parent or a vetted sponsor.”
“Our Office of Refugee Resettlement facilitates travel for the children in its custody to their family or sponsors across the country,” said HHS spokesman Jorge Silva.
Silva added that the “unaccompanied children” came through the Westchester airport to reach their final destination for unification with either “their parents or vetted sponsor.”
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In July and August alone, at least 37,805 unaccompanied minors were caught entering the United States from Mexico, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data.
The Washington Examiner contacted the White House but did not immediately receive a response.
