Two drivers in Arizona report illegal immigrants found to use Uber to transport them from the border to destinations within the interior of the United States.
QUICK FACTS:
- Several Uber drivers confirmed that they are regularly hired to drive illegal aliens from near the border between the United States and Mexico to locations further into the interior, according to Fox News.
- The Uber drivers pick up groups with bags in remote locations near Mexico and take them to their accommodations in what has been considered the normal course of their jobs.
- One driver said while they can cancel rides if they feel unsafe, he has no real way of knowing whether they are illegal immigrants when he accepts the trip, though law enforcement have warned him against transporting illegal immigrants.
- Fox News questioned Uber about the company’s knowledge of this pattern of behavior, however, the company’s response didn’t answer any questions beyond confirming that drivers are allowed to cancel rides and/or call the police over suspicious activity.
- One of the drivers believes that many are asylum seekers as they often set the destination as the Border Patrol headquarters.
WHAT THOSE INVOLVED ARE SAYING:
- “I just will get a notification of a pickup, head down to the location and there will be a group of 20 plus immigrants standing on the corner, waiting for Ubers,” one driver told Fox News. “It’s legit in the middle of nowhere.”
- “Technically it’s illegal to transport illegals,” another driver told Fox News upon the promise of anonymity.
- “We’re kind of put in between a rock and a hard place, because it’s coming through the app, and then we don’t know that they’re illegals until you start talking to them,” one driver said. “You find out and it’s like, too late now, I’m not just going to drop them off somewhere.”
- “This is new,” Yuma Mayor Doug Nicholls said. “This is not something that is a normal, standard operating procedure. The MPP [Migrant Protection Protocols], or the ‘Remain in Mexico’ program, coming back online is correlated to roughly where this happens.”
BACKGROUND:
- Yuma Mayor Douglas Nicholls declared his city to be in a state of emergency earlier this month due to the surge in illegal immigration. The emergency declaration allows the city to access state and federal aid, according to Yahoo News.
- Yuma, Arizona has become one of the most recent cities to be inundated with illegal immigrants. EMT and other emergency responders are being called to the border to assist with ailing immigrants dozens of times per week, according to Townhall.
