CRISIS BY DESIGN: Southwest border detention facilities have reached full capacity, says DHS.

Migrant detention facilities along the U.S.-Mexico border have reached full capacity as the number of migrants attempting to cross into the nation continues to increase ahead of the expiration of Title 42, according to an official with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

More than 20,500 migrants are currently in the custody of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection along the southwest border as of Saturday, the official said, adding that the actual number of migrants in custody varies every day.

As of Friday, Border Patrol in the Rio Grande Valley sector currently has around 7,500 migrants in custody, despite having a holding capacity of only 4,000 migrants.

“I want to say the first two weeks of April, we were averaging about maybe 1,700 Venezuelan nationals entering illegally into the country through that particular area in Brownsville,” said Gloria Chavez, Border Patrol Chief for the Rio Grande Valley Sector. “And then two weeks later, towards the end, here the last eight days, we saw an uptick of over 15,000 Venezuelans.”

More to come…