Feds lost track of tens of thousands of unaccompanied border kids, Homeland watchdog confirms

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Inspector General's office confirmed the government failed to properly monitor tens of thousands of unaccompanied minors who crossed the border without parents  

“Without an ability to monitor the location and status of UACs, ICE is unable to facilitate court appearances and has no assurance UACs are safe from trafficking, exploitation, forced labor, or involvement in criminal activities that may pose a risk to local communities,” the DHS inspector general said.

The report, published Wednesday, revealed that, from fiscal years 2019 to 2023, more than 448,000 unaccompanied minors were transferred to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ custody, with the majority then released to sponsors. However, more than 31,000 of the children’s release addresses were blank, missing apartment numbers, or otherwise incomplete.

"After meeting with more than 140 individuals from DHS and other Federal agencies, we determined U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) cannot effectively monitor the location and status of all unaccompanied alien children (UACs) once released or transferred from Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) custody," the report reads. "ICE also was not always aware of the location for UACs who fled HHS’ custody."

You can read the full report here.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.