Dogs Find 26 Aliens in Box Atop Truck

Twenty-six illegal aliens bound for Orange County were found “packed like sardines” in an 18-inch-high sealed attachment to a delivery truck roof early Thursday morning, the U.S. Border Patrol reported.

The 18 Mexicans and eight Salvadorans were on their way to Irvine, about 20 miles from the San Onofre checkpoint where they were discovered. Each had paid $300 to be smuggled from the border, supervisory Border Patrol Agent Michael Gregg said. No one was seriously injured, he said.

The passengers had been in the poorly ventilated compartment for more than three hours when agents found them. Gregg said the sealed compartment ran the length of the 1964 Ford bobtail truck, which looks much like a small delivery truck.

“This could have been a very tragic situation. There were women in there and one elderly gentleman over 70 years old,” Gregg said. No small children were in the compartment, he said.

Some of the passengers were suffering from slight delirium from the heat when they were removed from the compartment, which was about 20 feet long. No one was hospitalized, Gregg said.

The driver of the truck, a San Diego resident, was arrested and will be charged in connection with transporting illegal aliens, Gregg said. His name has not been released, pending arraignment.

Gregg said agents, who stopped the truck at 3:30 a.m., noticed the freshly painted box had a seam that looked unusual. He said agents suspected a false compartment had been added to the top. Canine units detected the hidden people.

Agents had to climb on top of the truck cab to peel back the sheet metal that formed the top of the truck and pry the top open. Gregg said the compartment was very tightly sealed shut.

Most of the aliens will be returned to their country after questioning, Gregg said, although some will be retained as material witnesses.

“Alien smugglings are not uncommon. The fact that you have a large number of people crammed into such a tiny space makes this case unusual,” Gregg said. “That’s an extremely dangerous situation for those people. They could have been abandoned by the smuggler or great injury, even death, could have resulted from the poor ventilation.”

Gregg said the compartment’s construction and the type of truck used indicate the smuggling might be a part of a professional operation.

The aliens most probably had been picked up near the border, although the exact location has not been pinpointed yet, he said.