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Authorities: Smugglers drop 2 children over US border wall

Posted at 4:33 PM, Mar 31, 2021
and last updated 2021-03-31 19:33:52-04

SANTA TERESA, N.M. (AP) — Authorities say two Ecuadoran children were abandoned by smugglers after being dropped over a 14-foot-high barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border Tuesday evening.

The toddler and her 5-year-old sister were unhurt, but officials with the U.S. Border Patrol called the incident near Santa Teresa, New Mexico, appalling.

It comes as the Biden administration struggles with finding space to house the several hundred kids and teenagers who are crossing the border daily.

In some cases, parents refused entry into the U.S. have sent their children across the border alone, hoping they will be placed with relatives eventually.