LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - The WBCA Anheuser-Busch Washington’s Birthday Parade is happening at 9:00 a.m., bringing excitement to San Bernardo Avenue.

Crowds are cheering as colorful floats, school groups, and local organizations make their way down the parade route.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - After nearly three years on the run, the man allegedly responsible for the 2022 murder of a 32-year-old man outside a Laredo nightclub is now in custody.

39-year-old Jesus Guadalupe Covarrubias was arrested and extradited from Mexico by U.S. Marshalls and the Gulf Coast Violent Fugitive Taskforce on Friday afternoon, February 21.

Covarrubias is considered the prime suspect in the murder of 32-year-old Daniel Arroyo, who was found dead at the plaza located at the 200 block of West Del Mar Boulevard.

He was captured in Mexico in January of 2023, and since then, Laredo and U.S. federal officials have been working to bring him back to the States.

After arriving in Laredo, Covarrubias has been taken to a detention center, where he will also be served with federal arrest warrants.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - This weekend will be playing host to one of the biggest attractions of the Washington’s Birthday Celebration Association (WBCA).

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) wants the public to be aware of a temporary halt in traffic at the Juarez-Lincoln Bridge on Saturday, February 22, as it is the site for the Abrazo Ceremony.

The ceremony features representatives from both sides of the border coming together as a sign of unity. Because of this, CBP will halt all north and southbound vehicle traffic at the bridge beginning at 5 a.m.

Traffic is set to resume four hours later at 9 a.m.; however, people are asked to make arrangements to cross before or after that window of time or use one of the other ports of entry.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - It’s been nearly two weeks since the Mexican National Guard set up checkpoints along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Many who travel through our sister city into Laredo are voicing their concerns about the delays caused by the checkpoints. However, the military is using new technology to speed up their inspection.

Operation Secure Border, also known as Frontera Seguara, is in full effect along the U.S.-Mexico border. In Nuevo Laredo, Mexican National Guardsmen like Ricardo Lopez Palafox have already seen results from the operation.

“We arrived at this bridge on February 8, and as of now, the U.S Customs have not reported illegal drugs arriving through their side,” Palafox said.

For drivers, the thorough inspections on the Mexican side of the bridges have been causing delays that take several hours.

Drivers from other border cities, like Reynosa, claim that the inspections have caused up to four to six-hour delays.

While drivers are calling the inspections a waste of time, Palafox assures that the use of new technology is helping with the inspections.

Noting, “We are using a robot called PROSCAN, which scans the framework of any vehicle. We also have a kit that checks for compartments where drugs can be hidden.”

The inspections are now impacting international trade and the flow of commerce according to some Mexican officials, including the President of the Nuevo Laredo Council of Institutions, Francisco Mejia.

“We agree with the inspections. However, we need to come to an agreement on how to keep order and the flow of traffic moving,” Mejia said.

The 10,000 Mexican National Guardsmen are currently stationed in 18 cities and towns as part of a deal to delay U.S. tariffs.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - Laredo Police had been notified of a crash involving a vehicle striking Dos Marias Kitchen at Del Mar Blvd. and McPherson Rd.

Police say the accident occurred at approximately 3:08 a.m. on Friday, February 21, and involved 18-year-old Alexas Claudine Villarreal, who was operating a Mercedes Benz at the time of the alleged crash.

Villarreal was arrested with a DWI charge and transported to a local hospital for medical attention. Currently, she has not yet been taken to the county jail.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) arrested a Honduran man wanted for sexual assault in Harris County during a traffic stop in Laredo.

DPS arrested 49-year-old Junior Adalid Montoya-Alvarez during an Operation Lone Star (OLS) traffic stop on February 12 just after 7 a.m.

Alvarez was driving an international truck tractor when he was stopped for a traffic violation on South Zapata Hwy. and Riverhill Loop.

Once stopped, Alvarez and several others inside the truck ran out and toward the nearby brush. After a multi-agency search, seven illegal immigrants and Alvarez were found.

Alvarez was arrested for human smuggling as well as a sexual assault charge after it was confirmed that he was wanted in Harris County.

Additionally, all seven illegal immigrants, who were found to be from Guatemala and Mexico, were referred to Border Patrol.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - For the first time this year, the Laredo City Council is addressing ongoing immigration policies, and the fear that some may have.

During Laredo’s City Council meeting on February 18, a Laredo attorney informed community members about their rights when dealing with immigration authorities.

The attorney, David Almaraz, stresses that citizen or not, you have rights. “You have the right not to answer certain questions. You have the right to remain silent. You have to right to ask for an attorney,” he advised.

Councilmember for District 3, Melissa Cigarroa, put the presentation on the agenda. She explained that she finds these conversations important within a border community, especially one like Laredo, where over 95% of people are Latino according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

She added that as immigration continues to be a focus point, it’s important for local government to inform people about their civil rights. “There are people who still feel that it is only criminals who are here without papers that are being targeted. In reality, we’ve heard cases where everyone is getting caught and round-up whether you have papers or not,” she said.

Almaraz states that in situations like that, people should remain polite and follow directions, and if asked about your immigration status, you have the right to remain silent.

He mentioned a few things to consider in such a situation. “Do not resist. Just say ‘I need a lawyer, can I call my lawyer?’ especially if they may be undocumented or have problems with their visas. You can also say ‘Can I call my immigration lawyer’ and they have to let you make a phone call.”

Moving forward, he believes local governments need to push back against policies being touted nationwide.

“Can ICE come into our school? Well, they’ve been doing it in other cities, and they keep saying, ‘No no it’s not going to happen here.' Whatever is happening in other places can and will happen here,“ Amaraz said.

Though no other council members spoke for or against the current situation, Cigarroa hopes the city council will draft a resolution that incorporates the perspectives of immigrant rights organizations in Laredo and establishes a united front on immigration policy.

Information that was provided during the presentation can be found here.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - The Abrazo Ceremony has been part of the Washington’s Birthday Celebration Association (WBCA) festivities since 1898 but has also seen its fair share of changes throughout the years.

Every year, four children dressed in elegant dresses and colonial costumes, along with officials from both sides of the border, meet at the Juarez-Lincoln Bridge for the annual abrazo gesture.

However, back in the day, the ceremony initially featured mostly male military officials from both the U.S. and Mexico where they would walk arm and arm in Downtown Laredo, symbolizing the merging of two nations.

One volunteer for the International Good Neighbor Council (IGNC) and the WBCA, Candy Hein, has been involved with the festivities for over 50 years and says that in 1969, one of her family members helped advocate for change that would alter the ceremony to what it is today.

“My aunt was very active in the community in both the WBCA and IGNC. When she was president of IGNC, she decided that the bridge ceremony needed some color, so they added the children so they could add color to the ceremony,“ Hein said.

The children are selected by the IGNCl and the WBCA to represent the U.S. and Mexico. After the children exchange their symbolic hugs or “abrazos,” the U.S. and Mexican dignitaries meet their counterparts in the middle of the bridge to share the same gesture.

This event is the only time each year that an international bridge linking the two countries is formally closed to the public.

In a separate article, we hear more from Hein about the history of the ceremony.