Nearly two dozen people hiding in truck bail out during pursuit in Texas
ENCINO, Texas (FOX 13) - Video from the Brooks County Sheriff's Office in Texas has gone viral because of the massive bailout from a truck they were pursuing near Encino, but the sheriff said this is a regular occurrence there.
The sheriff's office released the video on March 22 showing the deputy pulling over a stolen white F-250.
The dashcam video shows the door to the truck opening and then the truck taking off.
After a brief pursuit, at least 22 people who were hiding in various parts of the truck are shown bailing out of the truck and making a run for it.
The video has since been shared nearly 200,000 times and has more than nine million views.
Brooks County Sheriff Urbino "Benny" Martinez said the video was taken more than two years ago, and no one was taken into custody, but the video underscores what happens regularly in his county. "That's the norm here, because they're fanning through here," Sheriff Martinez said.
Over the weekend, in a neighboring county, Sheriff Martinez said a similar chase ended in the death of four undocumented immigrants.
Sheriff Martinez said undocumented immigrants are regularly found by his officers hiding in trucks, U-Hauls, trunks, and "anything that has wheels."
Encino, which is 70 miles north of the Rio Grande river, would benefit from a wall or a barrier, Sheriff Martinez told FOX 13.
"We cannot get a grip on the flows coming across the river, that's why this barrier, this wall, this fence will help us," he said. "You still need the human element to look, but it's definitely a tool, I can see that," said Sheriff Martinez. "Not all are coming to the border saying, 'Take me in.'"