1 of 1 Photo: HERIKA MARTINEZ / AFP / Getty Images
Texas has acquired a 1,400 acre ranch along the Rio Grande in a key area that officials say has seen human trafficking, as well as weapons and drug smuggling.
Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham tells Fox News it will be used to construct the border wall Governor Greg Abbott has promised.
"They said, ‘Look, it's in the main area of where we're seeing the traffic across the border. We have terrible things happening on this piece of property. The current owner is not only blocking the border wall, but she is blocking law enforcement's access to that property,'" she said. "'And to really get complete operational control of the border, we really need to control this piece of ground.’ So we made her an offer. We found a way to purchase her ranch from her."
The General Land Office now owns two pieces of land on the border in Starr Country encompassing more than 4,000 acres.
"It's at an area of great impact, it's in an area where we see lots of people coming across all of the time, not only seeing the people coming across, but seeing those women and children who are abused and victimized. We're seeing drugs. We're seeing weapons. We're seeing all kinds of things coming across this particular part of the border," she told Fox. "In fact, when we were touring it [Thursday], lots of trash everywhere. You can tell there have been a lot of people through there. So we think that this barrier, this wall that the Texas Facilities Commission will build, will help to control that traffic and hopefully shut it down."