Here's why it seems like there have been more border patrol agents on the roads

Rebecca Plevin Alena Maschke
Palm Springs Desert Sun
FILE - An US Border Patrol officer sits in his vehicle watching the fence line.

Coachella Valley residents have reported seeing an increased number of United States Customs and Border Protection officials on the region's roadways over the past two weeks – and it turns out they may have been right.

Agent Juan Gonzalez, spokesman for the El Centro Sector of the Border Patrol, confirmed the agency has at times temporarily shut down the border checkpoints on highways 111 and 86 near the Salton Sea and diverted agents to the roadways, transportation hubs and desert.

"The checkpoints have been down for whatever reason," Gonzalez said. "That's why they think they see more agents out in the field."

He declined to say when the checkpoints were closed or why, calling that "sensitive information."

Gonzalez said the increased presence is not part of any coming immigration crackdowns or raids, which jibes with the impressions of two valley advocates, who said they have heard of few detentions in recent days.

Still, in the heavily Latino Coachella Valley where immigrants already feel targeted by the intensely anti-immigrant Trump administration, the sight of the border patrol agents' white and green SUVs is raising alarms.

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The uptick in Customs and Border Protection sightings comes as the issue of immigration is heating up nationwide. Some immigrants are facing an insecure future as Congress debates a permanent solution for DACA, which protected young adults who entered the country illegally as children. Salvadoran immigrants recently learned they will lose deportation protections they'd had for almost 20 years.

Others are being targeted in raids: Federal immigration authorities descended on dozens of 7-Eleven stores last week, arresting 21 undocumented workers, and are allegedly planning a major sweep in Northern California, looking to arrest more than 1,500 people, according to news reports.

In the Coachella Valley, Customs and Border Protection sometimes closes checkpoints in order to send agents to specific locations in search of organized crime, narcotics or smugglers, Gonzalez said. 

When it's not manning a checkpoint, "our agency will use them as efficiently and effectively as possible," he said.

More:With new law, sheriffs will no longer notify immigration authorities when some undocumented immigrants are released from jail.

In these situations, he said some agents are sent to bus and train stations to engage in what he called "consensual encounters." He said agents introduce themselves to people and ask if they are legally present in the country. He said they are looking for "anything that violates federal immigration law," including smugglers, narcotics and undocumented people.

"If everybody is legally in the U.S. or has immigration papers, they'll be on their way," he said. If not, he said, "we'll enforce immigration law."

It's not a new practice, he said, but, "for lack of manpower, we don't do it as often as we would like."

The Coachella Valley as seen from a drone.

Responding to concerns about an uptick in the number of Customs and Border Protection SUVs on the highways, Gonzalez said, "as federal agents, we do have the authority to stop vehicles if we have probable cause."

The heightened border patrol presence over the past two weeks has struck fear into the region's immigrant community. In the city of Coachella, which has declared itself a sanctuary city, both residents and city leaders are feeling the heat.

"Many families are worried," resident Silvia Romero told the council Wednesday in Spanish, referring to the border patrol sightings. "Since we are a sanctuary city, what can you offer to the community?"

"We're going to need your help as well, because they're trying to arrest us too," Mayor Steve Hernandez responded half-jokingly in Spanish. He was referring to a recent interview with newly appointed director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Thomas Homan, who expressed the desire to individually prosecute leaders of sanctuary jurisdictions.

"If I'm arrested, it's OK with me, because I know I'm doing it for our residents," Hernandez said. "It's a priority for us that our residents feel safe."

In a Coachella Valley Facebook group with more than 6,000 members, people are helping each other stay safe by posting the locations that they see border patrol agents and which roads are clear. There have been around 40 posts a day over the past two weeks, according to Blanca Peña, one of the group's administrators.

One group member asked if it was safe to drive to an appointment at John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital in Indio, explaining he was afraid to drive on the 10 freeway. The group advised him to avoid it if possible. He later posted an update, saying he and his wife pushed the appointment back a day.

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"Since we must buy medicine tomorrow, we decided not to go out two days, only one," he posted in Spanish. "The truth is we're scared, but we have to resist and go out as little as possible."

Immigration attorney Megan Beaman has fielded similar questions over the past two weeks. In the past, she said, she would tell people it was safe to drive on the highways.

After learning about the closure of the checkpoints, she said, "I still would not assure people anymore like I used to. I don't know exactly what's going on and I don't know what the risks are."

Rebecca Plevin covers immigration and equality for the Desert Sun. Contact her at or @rebeccaplevin on Twitter.