New biometric technology discovered two impostors trying to enter the U.S. through the San Luis Port of Entry last week, officials said.
On Oct. 6, a 26-year-old man traveling from Mexico presented his border crossing card to U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers conducting pedestrian inspections.
Facial comparison technology showed the card didn't match the man's identity.
He was referred for a secondary inspection where officers confirmed he was not the owner of the card.
Several hours later, a 39-year-old man presented a permanent resident document to a border officer conducting inspections.
The biometric system reported a mismatch between the man and the document. He was referred for additional screening which determined he was not the true owner of the document and not a lawful permanent resident.
The men, both Mexican nationals, were arrested to face criminal prosecution, an agency news release said.
“Criminal elements continually look for creative techniques to enter the U.S. to include using stolen or rented genuine documents," said Petra Horne, the Tucson field office's acting director. "This new facial recognition technology virtually eliminates the ability for anyone to use someone else’s genuine document.”
