Border Patrol encounters of illegal immigrants from China at the U.S.-Mexico border increased more than 1,100%, according to recently updated federal data.

Encounters of Chinese migrants crossing illegally jumped from 1,970 in fiscal year 2022 to 24,048 in fiscal year 2023, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Border Patrol encounters of illegal immigrants at the southern border surpassed two million, overall.

“Right now in China there’s extreme pessimism, especially among people in their 20s about the future of their country, so it’s understandable that they’re leaving and they’re trying to get into the United States. And, you know, these are people who are relatively middle class, so it shows you the problems in Chinese society are severe,” China expert Gordon Chang previously told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

There is also some suspicion that the migrants from China are coming for nefarious purposes.

“When I first saw that the surge in Chinese migrants, that’s the thought that came to my mind that these are either Ministry of State Security agents or Chinese military, who are coming to this country to commit acts of sabotage against the US,” Chang said.

House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green said in June that he had evidence that some of the Chinese migrants crossing the southern border are connected to the Chinese Communist Party and China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA).

“In terms of the verification that the individuals released into the United States have ties to the PLA came from a sector chief and I’ll leave it with that at this point. We have a classified briefing coming up in the very near future,” Green said at the time.

CBP didn’t immediately respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.

Jennie Taer on October 23, 2023