Mexican migrant, 18, sobs as he's rescued by sheriff after being abandoned by people smugglers because he 'couldn't keep up'

Gut-wrenching video shows a teenage Mexican migrant crying for his mother as he was rescued by a sheriff in Texas after his smugglers abandoned him because he couldn't keep up with the group.

Terrell County Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland rescued 18-year-old Hector after he signaled for help on a game camera by showing his Mexican passport, Ali Bradley reported on NewsNation's Elizabeth Vargas Reports.

When Cleveland found Hector on the side of the road, the teenager broke down in tears begging for help.

'I want to go home to my mother. They left me in those hills, I had to cross from there to there, and I went to the ranch looking for help,' Hector said.

'They left, they abandoned me, I couldn't keep walking.'

Hector, an 18-year-old migrant, broke down in tears when he was rescued after getting abandoned by his smugglers

Terrell County Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland rescued 18-year-old Hector after he signaled for help on a game camera by showing his Mexican passport

'I want to go home to my mother. They left me in those hills, I had to cross from there to there, and I went to the ranch looking for help,' Hector said

Hector said he set out for Indianapolis with a group of 10 people and he paid smugglers $3,000 to cross the border after the cartel tried to get him to work for them. He said he would then have to pay an additional $3,000 when he reached his destination. 

'They threatened me in Tehuacan if I didn't work for the narcos, because I was indebted to them. So, I focused on getting out of Tehuacan as soon as I could,' he said.

The teenager was taken to the hospital after he was rescued and treated for muscle deterioration as a result of overuse, which likely caused him to fall behind from the group.

Cleveland told NewsNation Hector is one of the worst cases he has ever seen and that his office has recovered 37 bodies over the past three years.

After he was released from the hospital, Hector was sent back to Mexico.  

A federal appeals court issued an order that prevents Texas from arresting migrants suspected of entering the U.S. illegally - just hours after the Supreme Court allowed the strict new immigration law to take effect on Tuesday.

The SCOTUS decision had meant that Texas cops would be allowed to arrest people suspected of entering the country illegally, giving local officers powers long delegated to the federal government.

Mexico's Foreign Affairs Secretary Alicia Bárcena said in a sharply worded statement that it would refuse to take anyone back who is ordered to leave the country under the state law and that it 'categorically rejects' any state or local government enforcement of immigration laws.

A federal appeals court issued an order that prevents Texas from arresting migrants suspected of entering the U.S. illegally - just hours after the Supreme Court allowed the strict new immigration law to take effect on Tuesday

Over seven million migrants have managed to make their way across the southern border under President Biden, according to immigration data

The SCOTUS decision had meant that Texas cops would be allowed to arrest people suspected of entering the country illegally

'Mexico reiterates the legitimate right to protect the rights of its nationals in the United States and to determine its own policies regarding entry into its territory,' they said.

It further condemned the Texas law being allowed to take effect, saying it would criminalize migrants and lead to the separation of families, discrimination and racial profiling.

Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who signed the bill in December, has said the law was needed due to Biden's failure to enforce federal laws criminalizing illegal entry or re-entry, claiming in December that 'Biden's deliberate inaction has left Texas to fend for itself.'

In a statement posted to X following the Supreme Court decision, he noted that the appeals court was yet to make its decision but saw SCOTUS' ruling as 'a positive development.'

The Biden administration has argued that the law violates the Constitution and federal law by interfering with the federal government's power to regulate immigration.

Over seven million migrants have managed to make their way across the southern border under President Biden, according to immigration data. 

Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who signed the bill in December, has said the law was needed due to Biden's failure to enforce federal laws criminalizing illegal entry or re-entry

Mexico's government said it would not 'under any circumstances' accept the return of any migrants from the state

Statistics from U.S. Customs and Border Protection show that this fiscal year alone, there has already been a reported 961,537 border encounters

Statistics from U.S. Customs and Border Protection show that this fiscal year alone, there has already been a reported 961,537 border encounters.

The year, which runs from October to September, is already on current pace to break last year's record of 2,475,669.

Since Biden took office, the total number of southwest land border encounters hit a staggering 7,298,486.

The total does not include an estimated 1.8 million known 'gotaways' who managed to evade law enforcement.

That amount is larger than the individual populations of 36 states, including Alabama, Colorado, Maryland, Tennessee, Utah and West Virginia.