Border Patrol finds 3-year-old boy alone in corn field with phone number on his shoes

U.S. border agents found a 3-year-old boy alone and crying in a Texas cornfield after he was likely abandoned by smugglers, federal authorities said Wednesday.

Border Patrol officers were on patrol outside Brownsville, Texas on Tuesday morning, pursuing people who they believed crossed the border illegally. When the agents tried to apprehend them, they ran in different directions through an overgrown cornfield, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

After searching the field, the agents found the young boy. His name and phone number were written on his shoes. CBP was attempting to reunite the boy with his parents using the phone number.

The young boy, wearing denim pants and a dark blue jacket, was photographed watching a computer screen surrounded by federal officials in an image released by the U.S. government.

The boy will be transferred to a Health and Human Services facility, a CBP spokesperson said.

The news was first reported by NBC.

Authorities have apprehended record numbers of migrant families and children attempting to cross into the U.S. recently. Border agents took nearly 9,000 unaccompanied migrant children into U.S. custody in March, which is the highest monthly total in years.

Figures show there were at least 418,000 total apprehensions as of last week, compared to 404,142 year-to-date in 2018.