Houston, TX — Houston police were called to an assault Sunday night that ended with their finding 19 suspected illegal immigrants being held against their will.
The incident occurred at a home in the 9300 block of Klondike in southeast Houston around 1:15 pm.
Police said when they arrived at the alleged assault scene they notice the people in the home were being held against their will.
According to police, the 19 suspected immigrants, ranging in age from 20s to mid-30s, were from Honduras and El Salvador. Click2Houston reports that the immigrants were from Guatemala.
Investigators say the man who was assaulted at the home is now missing. Police are now searching for him.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers are investigating the case.
A neighbor said one of the suspected illegal immigrants stumbled into another house begging someone to call his brother.
“He had a gash on one foot, he had a broken foot,” resident Glenda Hagler said. “He couldn’t even walk straight, he looked like he had been beaten.”
Hagler said the man went into an elderly woman’s home, who then asked her neighbors to call police. When officers arrived at the home, they said more than a dozen men scattered throughout the neighborhood. Many had no shoes on as they ran away. Five more men were later found still hiding in the home. Police said the home is a rental property and had no furniture.
Earlier this month, two dozen suspected illegal immigrants were found packed into a van near a house in Houston. The individuals included children and adults, and they were taken into custody by ICE officers.