Before the Obama administration put in this detention policy (yes, it is several years old, not sure why it’s only getting attention now; it was previously phrased as children not being held with adults), illegal immigrants apprehended in the US with minors were released with an appointment card for their hearing, and frequently a cash-card so they could afford to get a place to stay.
Not only did this policy of releasing those arrested who had minors have the obvious effect of most of them not showing back up, but it became unignorable that children being brought in this way were not, in fact, released with their families. To be blunt, they figured it out when they kept raiding rape-houses and finding that those children being rented out for sex. This is why there is an emphasis on “birth control” being a “human right” for illegal immigrants.
This is in addition to the known problem of the cartels raping any female that hires them to get her into the country, the frequent rape by others being smuggled in, and the smuggled people being used as drug mules. They have packs sized for children, since they can’t handle a full sized mule bale of pot, or the large backpacks full of harder stuff.
The families of those who die without delivering are often charged for the drugs.
Human trafficking investigation is really hard on agents for many reasons.
This is the situation that any child, or claimed child, who is being smuggled across the border is put into. Please keep it in mind when someone is trying to whip up a mob to go after those trying to deal with the problem.