Drug seizures, gun seizures, and daily interactions with illegal aliens at our southern border continue to take a back seat to many in the media and are used as a talking point by those on the right. But the men and women of the United State Customs and Border Protection agency continue to work tirelessly to try and stem the flow of illegal narcotics, drugs, and criminals into this country despite the political climate.
The latest data from the CBP shows in the current fiscal year, over 164 thousand pounds of illegal narcotics have been seized by the agency.
The trained agents encounter new and creative methods that drug smugglers undertake in the hopes that their products might make it past all the checkpoints and on their way to our neighborhoods to be sold on the streets for a hefty profit.
Late last year Mariposa Port of Entry Director Michael Humphries spoke to a local news outlet KOLD about the creative methods they saw employed.
Humphries says smugglers use any void they can think of.
“We’ve had false floors, inside of gas tanks, drive shafts where they’re hollow,” said Humphries, “They cut it open, fill it with pills, weld it back together, put it back on the car and drive through.
“There’s fentanyl pills floating in the gas. Narcotics concealed inside all four tires of the vehicles, floor compartments,” said Humphries.
From deep concealment in cars to creative concealment inside tamales.
“Here they hollowed out an ice chest. Took out all the insulation. Replaced the insulation with blue fentanyl pills. Then they fill it with ice, meat or tortillas and try to get it through the port,” said Humphries. “Someone walking up with a walker. The metal tubes were completely full of fentanyl pills. I believe it was around 14,000 fentanyl pills.”
The arrest of illegal aliens with criminal convictions is also on the rise.
According to CBP, the term “criminal noncitizens” refers to individuals who have been convicted of one or more crimes, whether in the United States or abroad, prior to interdiction by the U.S. Border Patrol; it does not include convictions for conduct that is not deemed criminal by the United States. Arrests of criminal noncitizens are a subset of total apprehensions by the U.S. Border Patrol.
In the fiscal year 2023 so far there have been 3,030 arrests of individuals encountered with a criminal record. A large majority of them are for individuals who have been previously convicted of.. you guessed it, illegal entry into the United States.
The total number includes 10 individuals convicted of murder and 74 that have been convicted of sex crimes.
Another major concern that is often overlooked is the number of weapons seizures
“We have seen an increase in armed encounters,” said San Diego Chief Patrol Agent Aaron Heitke said in January. “In 2022, our agents seized more than 60 firearms, an increase of almost 50% when compared to 2021.”
“We never know who we’ll encounter as we patrol the border,” he added. “Our agents are the first line of defense against smugglers who have become more aggressive and brazen in their attempts to bring people and narcotics into our country.”
Agents and local law enforcement are facing increasing dangers as they go about securing our nation's borders.
"A Border Patrol agent assigned to the McAllen Station patrolling the international boundary on an all-terrain vehicle was tracking a group of subjects that illegally crossed the border when he was involved in an accident near Mission, Texas," CBP told The Washington Examiner in December. "He was found unresponsive by fellow agents, who immediately initiated life-saving efforts and requested EMS."
The agent was transported by ambulance to a nearby hospital. The agent died at the hospital.
News Break contributor Lauren Jessop reports that "Data obtained from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) shows that in FY 2022, there were 1,077 assaults on agents in select sectors. That number only includes Border Patrol Agents from sectors along the southwest border; if we were to include all areas of responsibility as well as Office of Field Operations Officers, the total is 2,340."
There have been numerous incidents where CBP officers have taken gunfire from the Mexico side of the border. Helicopters have captured footage of alleged cartel members pointing long guns at air assets.
But it is not just law enforcement that faces dangerous conditions.
In October of last year, the Rio Grand Valley sector put out a press release highlighting the dangers that illegal border crossers themselves face.
In 2022 RGV agents rescued numerous migrants from drowning in the Rio Grande, inhumane stash houses, locked refrigerated trailers, and those abandoned or lost in the vast brushlands. Additionally, they rendered assistance to injured migrants following vehicle accidents or sustained while making entry.
In the month of September, migrants reported at least five incidents of robbery, near the riverbank, of money and personal belongings after they made an illegal entry. More than 30 migrants alleged during their apprehension, they were threatened with a knife or bat. In two of the events, they were robbed by a sole offender, the other events were orchestrated by a bandit duo. They stated they were released after turning over whatever they had of value.
Additionally, individuals, both male and female, continue to claim having been sexually assaulted at migrant stash houses or in the brush on both sides of the river. Individuals also claim the sexual assault happened in the brush while walking around the Border Patrol Checkpoints.
Some victims reported the sexual assault was perpetrated by their own foot guide, and others reported by individuals encountered in the brush after getting lost or separated from their group.