Angolan child migrant drowns in Rio Grande, brother’s body still missing

Mexican authorities agents recovered the body of a 7-year-old child from the Rio Grande and they and U.S Border Patrol agents were still searching for his 9-year-old brother, who was also believed to have drowned in the river, authorities said Friday.

The brothers were trying to sneak into the U.S. with their parents, migrants from Angola, when the boys were swept away by currents near Del Rio, Texas, on Monday.

Mexican authorities found the first body Thursday on their side of the river.

They also found another body, that of an adult man, during the search.

The parents of the two boys, who made it to the U.S. side, were processed by Border Patrol agents and then released, according to law enforcement officials.

Del Rio, which used to be a relatively quiet section of the border, was slammed during the initial stages of the Biden border surge last year, and recorded a sharp rise in deaths, particularly drownings.

The area is expected to take the brunt of the new surge of illegal immigrants expected as the Biden administration works to end of the Title 42 pandemic border shutdown later this month.