More children as young as 10-years-old are committing crimes, and authorities say it’s a growing concern.

Just off Business 77 and Paso Real is the Darrell B. Hester Juvenile Detention Center in San Benito.

The center houses boys and girls between the ages of 10 and 16 accused of a crime. The time they spend here depends on the charges they face.

"If it's a misdemeanor, it could be 10 days, 15 days,” Darrell B. Hester Juvenile Detention Center Deputy Director Michael Martinez said. “If it's a felony offense, a repeat offender, it could be two to three months or longer."

Staff are busy morning and night monitoring the young offenders 24/7 “to ensure their safety and [that] they're not harming themselves and they're not harming someone else as well,” Martinez said. 

According to Martinez, the kids are awake by 6:15 a.m. Monday through Friday.

“They brush their teeth, clean their rooms by 7 o’clock, they're escorted to the mess hall to eat their breakfast,” Martinez said.

During meals, only eight kids are allowed to eat at the same time. The groups are kept small to avoid any potential situations. They are kept on a tight schedule, and given only 15 minutes to eat.

From there, the young offenders are moved to different programs based on their offenses, gender and age.

The detention center also provides snacks for the juveniles twice a day.

In addition to classes provided by San Benito ISD, some of the juveniles will meet with their counselors.

The detention center also keeps track of their behaviors with the different colored jumpsuits the inmates wear.

The juveniles are at the detention center on charges of theft, engaging in organized criminal activity, and possession of a controlled substance.

The amount of juveniles charged with theft increased from 36 in 2022 to 54 in 2024.

The amount of juveniles charged with possession of a controlled substance jumped from 200 in 2022 to 247 in 2024.

The Darrell B. Hester Juvenile Detention Center is going through a major construction project, and they are at capacity. 

The center said they've seen a steady increase of referrals since the beginning of 2025.

Watch the video above for the full story.

Tune in to Channel 5 News at 10 for part two of our special report on the rise of juvenile offenses in Cameron County.