Less than 50% of people caught at border are from Mexico

According to new data from the U.S. Border Patrol, slightly less than half of the people that were apprehended at the Mexican border are from Mexico.

In the first six months of 2016, of the 264,165 people were apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border, only 49.6 percent of them were from Mexico. While many of the people apprehended were from Central American countries, a large number of the people nabbed at the border were from far-distant countries.

The countries, in order, with the most apprehensions at the Southwest border in the first half of 2016 were: Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, India, Brazil, Ecuador, China, Romania, and Nicaragua.

While the bulk of people trying to cross into the United States via the Southwest border are from Mexico and Central American nations, it is surprising to see people trying to cross into the United States from South America and even countries in Europe and Asia.

The San Diego Union Tribune provided a colored map that shows how many people from different countries across the world were apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border. It shows that people worldwide are capitalizing on the United States’ vulnerability by trying to enter the U.S. via the Southwest border.