Three illegal immigrants that were abandoned by their smuggler were rescued Sunday.
According to the U.S. Border Patrol ,on Friday , March 9 , agents received information from someone in Mexico , that three people were lost in the mountainous. The three had apparently crossed into the United States illegally on Thursday night. Agents assigned to the El Centro Border Patrol Station began a coordinated search and , as the search went on , activated the Border Patrol Search , Trauma , and Rescue ( BORSTAR ) team , the Civil Air Patrol and aircraft from the CBP Air and Marine Operations. Agents were able to coordinate the search with a relative of one of the lost individuals and .located the three at about 5:00 a.m. Sunday. The trio was provided first aid and then transported to the El Centro Border Patrol station for processing. Assistant Chief Patrol Agent David Kim said . " Our agents never gave up searching for these men in distress over the course of three days. We wanted to ensure that these men didn't lose their lives because a callous smuggler abandoned them in one of the most rugged areas in California."