Smuggler's Highway: Southern Border's Escape Route

This border situation has become a political powder keg, with both sides of the aisle using it as ammunition in this upcoming election in just a few weeks. But tonight, we're focusing on the Arizona border. With 378 miles of shared border with Mexico, divided into the Tucson and Yuma sectors, Arizona has become a hotspot for illegal crossings. The "gotaways" are people who slip past our Border Patrol without getting caught. In the fiscal year 2023, Arizona had more than 775,000 illegal border crossers, and at least 200,000 were "gotaways". There is a stretch of road called "Smuggler's Highway," which is a remote, treacherous stretch of desert where temperatures can soar to a blistering 118 degrees. Smugglers are leading migrants through this hellish terrain, putting lives at risk and overwhelming our Border Patrol agents. And if that weren't bad enough, the cartels are getting crafty in Arizona. They're using social media to recruit American teenagers to be their drug or human mules. Dr. Phil meets up with Sheriff Mark Lamb, who offers to take him on a "drive-along" on that stretch of road where high-speed chases happen every day, putting everyone on the road at risk. And sometimes, it ends tragically. Take the story of Wanda Sitoski. Her daughter, Valarie, sits down with Dr. Phil to talk about how her mother's life was cut short when a 16-year-old American smuggler running from the law crashed right into her…killing her instantly. Dr. Phil meets Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels, who says he and his team are trying to protect 6219 square miles of rugged terrain. Plus, our camera crew goes on a dangerous chase with Sheriff Dannels's interdiction team.