LAREDO, TX – Laredo Sector Border Patrol has encountered a dangerous trend of weapons being encountered during human smuggling events. Within 24 hours, three weapons were seized in three separate events involving human smuggling. The first incident occurred during the late afternoon of January 10, when agents from the Freer Station acted on an alert of several individuals traveling by foot in a ranch just east of State Highway 16. With assistance from Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations, they were able to apprehend five individuals on a walking trail in the brush. During a search of the individuals, agents discovered a backpack that contained a loaded shotgun. All of the individuals were in the United States illegally and from the countries of Mexico and Guatemala.