OAN Staff Jenna Lee
10:05 AM – Friday, May 29, 2026
The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) announced that six Chinese nationals were among about two dozen undocumented immigrants who were arrested after hiding on private ranches in Maverick County.
Lieutenant Chris Olivarez, a spokesperson for the Texas DPS’s South Texas Region, stated that Texas DPS tracking K-9 Bona and her handler, along with U.S. Border Patrol, combed a private ranch and eventually located and apprehended the individuals.
“Operation Lone Star continues nonstop to arrest illegal immigrants along our border. Last night, Texas DPS helped track and apprehend Special Interest Aliens from China who were attempting to evade capture on private ranches in Maverick County,” stated Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R-Texas) in a post on X on Wednesday.
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Abbott originally launched the state-led border security operation on March 6, 2021, citing concerns over lax border enforcement under the Biden administration. The initiative deployed personnel from the DPS and the Texas National Guard to assist state and local law enforcement agencies in securing Texas’s shared border with Mexico.
The Chinese immigrants, designated as “special interest aliens” (SIAs), fit the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) definition of an individual who, “based on an analysis of travel patterns, potentially poses a national security risk to the United States.”
Texas DPS has reported a series of similar cases in the South Texas region involving Chinese nationals crossing the border illegally.
On January 30th, Texas DPS troopers stopped a gray Toyota Camry on U.S. Highway 277 in Maverick County and discovered four people being smuggled inside the country, including Beibei Liu, a special interest alien from China.
Later, on May 5th, U.S. Border Patrol and a DPS Brush Team apprehended six individuals during multiple encounters in the Roma area of Starr County, one of whom was also identified as a Chinese SIA.
“These apprehensions highlight the ongoing efforts in deterring criminal activity along the southern border and the critical partnership between Texas DPS and our federal partners under Operation Lone Star. Border security is national security,” said Olivarez.
Located in the northwestern section of the Rio Grande plain region in southwest Texas, Maverick County has recently become a focal point for border enforcement.
According to the DHS, the Del Rio Sector, which encompasses Maverick County, has seen dramatic decreases in both the number of illegal immigrant encounters and known “gotaways,” declining by 89.6% and by 90.7%, respectively, in fiscal year 2026. Under the Trump administration, the DHS has continued to emphasize strict enforcement protocols and enhanced vetting for individuals originating from special interest countries.
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