Panama arrests 15 people for smuggling Chinese migrants through the Darien Gap

PANAMA CITY -- Border police in Panama said Wednesday that they have arrested 15 people who allegedly ran a smuggling ring to move Chinese migrants through the Darien Gap.

The dangerous, jungle-clad gap connects Colombia and Panama, and represents a major route for migrants to reach the U.S. border. In recent years, Chinese have become the fourth-largest group by nationality to use the crossing. Most of those crossing are Venezuelans.

More than 500,000 migrants crossed the Darien Gap in a record-breaking 2023. So far this year, more than 212,000 migrants have crossed, though reports in July suggested the flow may have declined in recent weeks.

Panama's National Border Service said 11 vehicles, two dozen cell phones, a rifle and cash were seized in the raids on the migrant smuggling ring.

Panama’s president has vowed to crack down on the massive migrant flows, and border police have erected about three miles of barbed wire to block some trails and funnel migrants to a single reception point.

Panama’s President, José Raúl Mulino — who took office July 1 — has promised to halt the rising flow of migrants entering his country from Colombia and reached an agreement for the U.S. government to pay for repatriation flights.

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