US border arrests fall in March, bucking seasonal trends amid increased enforcement in Mexico

Arrests for crossing the U.S. border illegally fell slightly in March, authorities said Friday, bucking a usual spring increase amid increased immigration enforcement in Mexico. The Border Patrol made 137,480 arrests of people entering from Mexico, down 2.3% from 140,638 arrests in February, the first time since 2017 that arrests fell in March from the previous month. Mexico detained migrants 240,000 times in the first two months of the year, more than triple from the same period of 2023, sending many deeper south into the country to discourage them from coming to the United States.