DONNA – Border Patrol Rio Grande Valley sector chief is warning those wanting to cross the border about the dangers of stash houses.

Chief Manuel Padilla Jr. says it’s a growing epidemic with reports of 122 stash houses being busted over the past six months.

He says stash houses aren’t just a room where people wait to be transferred from one point to another, it’s often a place where human beings are treated like objects.

It’s becoming more common for the smugglers to become violent and hold the migrants for a long period of time to seek extra money.

Smugglers know their human cargo can’t escape and go to the police for fear of being deported.

Watch the clip above for the full report.