McLean, TX – Homeland Security officials say there have been 148 cases where someone fraudulently posed as a family member of children at the U.S. border from October to April.
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According to figures released Tuesday, the cases involved 301 people. Officials did not say how many were children.
Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen has said there was a 314 percent increase in adults showing up with kids who are not family members. She says they are traffickers and smugglers.
More than 2,300 minors have been separated from their families crossing the border to the U.S. under a zero-tolerance policy where everyone caught crossing illegally is prosecuted.
Nielsen says those legitimately seeking asylum should go to official border crossings with their families and they will not be separated.