White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki Insists It Was an "Early Flight" When Asked Why the Administration Is Flying Illegal Immigrants in the Middle of the Night

White House press secretary Jen Psaki had denied claims that illegal immigrants are being flown from the southern border to suburban New York in the middle of the night.

Psaki said that it was 2:30 a.m., 4:29 a.m. and that it was early flights, earlier than one might like to take a flight, according to a Fox News report.

Fox News' Peter Doocy asked Psaki why the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden is flying thousands of migrants from the border to Florida and New York in the middle of the night.

Psaki said that it is their legal responsibility to safely care for unaccompanied children until they can be turned over to a parent or vetted sponsor.

The press secretary said that the unaccompanied children have passed through the Westchester airport going to be reunited with their parents or vetted sponsor.

She added that it's not just New York that the unaccompanied children can be seen traveling. However, she did not provide any details on how long the program has been running or how many kids have been transported, according to the New York Post report.

As many as 2,000 children and teens may have been carried on at least 21 charter flights that landed in Westchester since August 8.

New York Post reporters had reportedly watched two planes land at the airport, where most of the passengers seemed to be children and teens, with a small number of men to be in their 20s, according to the National Review report.

Someone familiar with the matter said that underage migrants reportedly arrive carrying backpacks and are allegedly abused to locations in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and upstate Newburgh.

Connecticut was also cited as a location where migrant children are being reportedly abused.

Unaccompanied Migrant Children

Newsday reported that MercyFirst in Long Island shelters children detained after crossing the Southern border with Mexico. The facility has a contract with the Office of Refugee Resettlement to house unaccompanied minors who enter the U.S. from other countries, usually from Central and South America. The youth housed in the facility usually stay for less than 50 days before they are relocated again, which are often with family sponsors.

Rep. Tom Suozzi said that the 100-bed facility houses about 50 unaccompanied minors ages 12 to 18.

In August, Border Patrol facilities have seen a steady rise in the number of migrant children. There were more than 2,200 unaccompanied children in U.S. Customs and Border Protection custody, according to a Reuters report.

A CBP spokesperson said that the number includes Mexican children who were quickly returned to their home country. Central American children are transferred to U.S. federal shelters.

In mid-March, CBP had held more than 5,700 unaccompanied children at border stations. Migrant advocates said that the facilities are not appropriate for young children.

A top U.S. Department of Homeland Security official, David Shahoulian, said that record numbers of unaccompanied children were more than 19,000 in July.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Migrant Children Flown To NY - But What Happens Afterward? - from NBC New York