LYTLE, Texas – Lytle Police Chief Richard Priest says his officers are dealing with a rising number of pursuits and bailouts involving migrants, responding to five this week.
“We act as a supporting role. We get word there’s a bailout, and we try to get over there and protect our citizens,” Priest said.
The chief said he worries about his officers getting injured as they run through creek beds and rough terrain searching for suspects.
Priest said their involvement in pursuits has increased in the last six to eight months.
Some of the chases have ended up on officers’ doorsteps.
“One of my officers had one right in front of his house in a residential area,” Priest said.
He’s asking residents in Lytle and surrounding rural areas along I-35 to lock their doors and secure their sheds to give suspects fewer places to hide.
“What’s strange is we’re 132 miles from the border. I never considered us a border community,” he said.