Border apprehensions hit 12-year high in March as Trump vows 'tougher direction'

U.S. Border Patrol agents apprehended more than 92,000 immigrants trying to cross the border illegally in March, a 12-year high announced Tuesday as President Donald Trump moved to replace top leadership at the Department of Homeland Security and vowed tougher immigration policies.In March, 92,607 immigrants were apprehended at the border – the highest monthly total since April 2007, when 104,465 immigrants were stopped trying to enter the country illegally.

Of those apprehended in March, 30,555 were single adults, 8,975 were unaccompanied children and 53,077 were family units, primarily from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said.

The number of family units apprehended is an all-time high.

“The Border Patrol is facing an unprecedented humanitarian and border security crisis," said Brian Hastings, the Border Patrol's chief of law enforcement operations. "We’ve arrived at the breaking point.”