The parents of four of the five migrant children who were abandoned by human smugglers on a Texas farm earlier this month have illegally crossed the United States-Mexico border in the hope of reuniting with them.
Guatemalan national Daisy Sánchez, her boyfriend Ashley Padilla, and the latter's brother-in-law, Gabriel Castillo, both of Honduras, crossed into Texas after trekking through the southwestern border region for almost two weeks, Univision reported Thursday night.
Sánchez's sister, Yolanda, told the network that the trio were 'satisfied and happy' after illegally crossing the border. Their children were left behind by smugglers on a farm in the Texas border town of Quemado and found by the landowners the morning of May 9.
'They said that they are fine, that she is fine, for me not to worry me,' Sánchez said. 'The important thing is that she is fine. That is what matters the most. Now I have wait for her to come. That's all,' Yolanda Sánchez said.
Sánchez did not reveal where her sister, Padilla and Castillo currently are. DailyMail.com has contacted Border Patrol officials to determine if the family have been detained.
Daisy Sánchez and Padilla are the parents of 11-moth-old Valeria Padilla. Sánchez's older daughter, Asheli, 5, is from a previous relationship. Castillo is the father of Nashly, 7, and Cristal, 4.
His wife and Ashley's sister, Sandra Padilla, is currently still in Mexico, after she was deported after she also illegally crossed into the US.
Five girls from Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico were found May 9 by Texas onion and watermelon farmer Jimmy Hobbs and his wife on their property in the border town of Quemado, across from the Mexican state of Coahuila
The photo of the abandoned children was posted on Twitter by Congressman Tony Gonzalez on Sunday after first being shared on border Facebook groups. The parents of four of the girls have crossed into the United States, Univision reported Thursday
Gabriel Castillo is one of the three parents whose four daughters were abandoned by smugglers on a farm in Texas on May 9. The adults, according to Univision, crossed the Mexico-United States border this week and hope to reunite with their children
Daisy Sánchez (left) and her boyfriend, Ashley Padilla (right), were able to cross the United States-Mexico border after almost two weeks of traveling across the dangerous terrain with little food and water, according to Univision
Sánchez, Castillo and Ashley Padilla were followed by Univision during part of their voyage through an unknown area of the border last week and told the network of the frightening showdown they had with a group of armed men as they waited to cross the Rio Grande on a raft moments after the children had been ferried over on the same inflatable boat.
They claimed that the gang held them up at gunpoint and took them to a stash house where they were kept for days.
'Let's say (there is a feeling of) helplessness,' Castillo said. 'Because you want to do something but you can't anymore when they are pointing a gun at you and your life is between your back and the wall, and the lives of the girls are on the other side. You feel powerless.'
Sánchez said they were able to escape through the broken window of stash house where other migrant families were being held.
The three adults then set out on a hike - with little water and food - through a dangerous mountain region that has claimed the lives of countless migrants seeking the American dream.
It was through Univision that the parents first watched the viral video that shows their children lying on the dirt and being tended to by Jimmy Hobbs and Katie Hobbs, owners of a farm located yards away the Rio Grande.
The wife of a man employed by the couple feed Sánchez's baby girl while the four other children sat on the dirt ground.
Their daughters along with a fifth child, whose identity is unknown, have been held at the Casa El Presidente, a shelter for migrants in Brownsville, Texas.
Sandra Padilla, the mother of Nashley (front left) and Cristal (front right), is still in Mexico and is requesting help from U.S. authorities to reunite with her daughters. She was deported for trying to illegally enter the U.S. from Mexico
A monthly report released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection on May 11 showed that border agents 17,171 unaccompanied children at the southwestern border in April, down 9 percent from 18,890 in March when a record number of unaccompanied migrant children entered U.S. custody.
Overall, border patrol agents encountered 178,622 undocumented immigrants seeking to enter the United States in April, surpassing March's total by 5,274.
Apprehensions along the 1,954-mile border in April were more than 10 times that of April 2020, when 17,106 individuals were stopped by border patrol agents.
Valeria Padilla, an 11-month-old girl born in Mexico, was found May 9 on a farm in Quemado, Texas farm, with her sister, two cousins and another girl after they had been smuggled across the United States-Mexico border
Katie Hobbs and her husband Jimmy Hobbs discovered five migrant girls near a river on their farm in Quemado, Texas, which borders with the northeastern Mexican state of Coahuila
Arrests of undocumented migrants trying to cross the international borderline increased gradually during the last nine months of President Donald Trump's administration and have continued to do so in President Joe Biden's first three months in office.
Biden, who has shown a willingness to allow migrants to apply for asylum, tabbed Vice President Kamala Harris in March to lead the nation's efforts in combating illegal migration and dealing with its root causes.
Harris had held virtual conference calls with Mexico President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei.
Daisy Sánchez looks at a video for the first time that shows the moment a couple found her two daughters on their farm in Quemado, Texas, on May 9 after the children and three other girls, including her boyfriend's two nieces, were ferried on a raft across the Mexico-United States border
She has also taken part in meetings with interest groups, policy experts and companies from the region.
On Thursday, Harris on announced commitments from a dozen companies and organizations to invest in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador as part of the Biden administration's efforts to tackle a crisis that embattled the aforementioned countries, Mexico and the U.S.
Harris is slated to visit Guatemala and Mexico in June as part of her first official overseas trips.
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