Amid an already historic crisis at America’s southern border, the Border Patrol Union is sounding major alarms about the consequences being foisted upon Arizona communities.
On September 14, the Border Patrol Union “X” account shared insights on the catch and release of thousands of illegal aliens in southern Arizona, writing, “DHS personnel in Arizona are now using the term ‘freedom runs’ when instructing BP agents about mass releases of illegal aliens in Tucson. There is almost no manpower left for enforcement duties as agents’ calls for assistance go unanswered and the vast majority are tied up with huge numbers of surrendering border crashers. Agents have been instructed to prioritize the processing of surrendering illegal aliens instead of patrolling the border.”
DHS personnel in Arizona are now using the term "freedom runs" when instructing BP agents about mass releases of illegal aliens in Tucson.
There is almost no manpower left for enforcement duties as agents' calls for assistance go unanswered and the vast majority are tied up with…
The account added, “And while all this sanctioned lawlessness ties up resources, the murderous cartel thugs continue to run hugely successful border operations while making billions of dollars smuggling missions of illegal aliens, tons of fentanyl and whatever else they want to send here, courtesy of Joe Biden. The Biden Admin will not be satisfied until every last spark of BP agent morale is extinguished.”
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security released official numbers of southern border apprehensions for August late Friday, showing that over 230,000 migrants had been encountered by agents in the field, putting the total number for the Fiscal Year at more than 2,200,000.
A reporter for Fox News confirmed that the “total migrant encounters for FYTD23 have surpassed FY22 total setting a new record” – with one month remaining in the fiscal year.
* RECORD-BREAKING* CBP sources confirm to FOX News total migrant encounters for FYTD23 have surpassed FY22 total setting a new record.
2,388,350FYTD23 so far vs 2,378,944FY22 total.
Fiscal years run Oct to Oct so there is a week left w 9000+ a day averaging @FoxNews
Arizona State Representative Quang Nguyen has also taken to his “X” account to share reports of chaos and lawlessness from the southern border. Earlier this week, he relayed a memo from someone at the border, which read, “It’s out of control down here! the Border Patrol agents were told to cease all law enforcement operations, no arrests allowed! they are all processing and transporting aliens now. They are dropping off aliens all over town at shopping centers. The Tucson Sector is avg 12,000 apprehensions a week, and that is just the give ups. There are no agents in the field, so all aliens not giving up (the bad ones) are just freely walking north because there are no agents working in the field! The trail cameras across the state are going off non stop with groups, and no agents are allowed to respond. It’s gone! we lost!”
I occasionally receive reports from a friend who works at the border. At 8:45 pm this evening, I received a series of texts from him with permission to post:
It's out of control down here! the Border Patrol agents were told to cease all law enforcement operations, no arrests… pic.twitter.com/rEyUd390o1
Representative Nguyen followed up with another post on Friday – this one about what the illegal aliens were leaving behind as they made their way into the United States. He said, “Another text from the border today: ‘Trash left behind by the aliens sneaking into this country… OVER 50+ miles north of the border on Arizona State Trust land. Every wash out here is littered with trash.”
Another text from the border today (10:31 AM):
“Trash left behind by the aliens sneaking into this country… OVER 50+ miles north of the border on Arizona State Trust land. Every wash out here is littered with trash!” pic.twitter.com/F9AaYatJC5
The Border Patrol Union also recently opined on the border cartels’ prowess at the border, saying, “Criminal cartels are making billions dumping illegal aliens at places of their choosing along the border & tying up overwhelmed BP resources with ‘asylum’ claims while moving fentanyl and whatever else they want in other places. They own this border. Biden is their best buddy.”
Criminal cartels are making billions dumping illegal aliens at places of their choosing along the border & tying up overwhelmed BP resources with "asylum" claims while moving fentanyl and whatever else they want in other places. They own this border.
Fentanyl drug seizures have largely increased by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials in Fiscal Year 2023, with over 25,000 pounds apprehended in the past 11 months – approximately the combined numbers for fiscal years 2021 and 2022 of encountered fentanyl. According to a December 22 article in the Washington Post, “federal agents estimate that they are seizing about 5 to 10 percent of the drugs coming from Mexico – if that much.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
The crisis at America’s southern border continues to have historic repercussions for Arizona.
On Wednesday, Fox News reporter Bill Melugin revealed that thousands of migrants illegally crossing the southern border into Arizona were being released into border communities. He wrote, “NEW: Per Border Patrol sources, street releases of migrants who crossed illegally are beginning today in the Tucson, AZ sector due to CBP facilities being overcapacity. The Tucson sector alone saw over 2,000 illegal crossings yesterday in a 24 hour span. Mass releases underway.”
NEW: Per Border Patrol sources, street releases of migrants who crossed illegally are beginning today in the Tucson, AZ sector due to CBP facilities being overcapacity. The Tucson sector alone saw over 2,000 illegal crossings yesterday in a 24 hour span. Mass releases underway.
Melugin added, “We have a cameraman in the sector right now, where large numbers of single adult men from Africa have been crossing illegally, including many from Senegal. People from all over the world arrive in the Tucson sector.”
We have a cameraman in the sector right now, where large numbers of single adult men from Africa have been crossing illegally, including many from Senegal. People from all over the world arrive in the Tucson sector. pic.twitter.com/BM7UNVm084
The information specific to the Tucson sector followed a report from Melugin the previous day, where he shared the following – “NEW: Per CBP sources, yesterday alone, Border Patrol apprehended over 7,400 illegal immigrants at the southern border, & when combined with CBP ports of entry, there were over 9,100 migrant encounters in one day. I’m told CBP released 5,000+ yesterday w/ a notice to appear. As of this morning, CBP had over 21,000 people in custody.”
NEW: Per CBP sources, yesterday alone, Border Patrol apprehended over 7,400 illegal immigrants at the southern border, & when combined with CBP ports of entry, there were over 9,100 migrant encounters in one day. I’m told CBP released 5,000+ yesterday w/ a notice to appear. As of…
NewsNation reporter Ali Bradley also chimed in on the situation on the ground in Arizona, focusing in on the southeastern part of the state. She stated, “Migrants are being released into Cochise County communities right now – Sheriff Mark Dannels confirms the releases are a direct result of over-capacity by CBP. Sheriff Dannels is frustrated with the situation saying, ‘The migrants being released are from outside Cochise County but were bussed to Cochise County, processed and then released. Cochise County is a rural county with limited resources leaving these migrants vulnerable. In short, this lack of humanitarian consideration poses risk for the migrants.”
AZ: NEW: Migrants are being released into Cochise County communities right now—Sheriff Mark Dannels confirms the releases are a direct result of over-capacity by CBP.
Sheriff Dannels is frustrated with the situation saying, “The migrants being released are from outside Cochise…
Members of the Arizona Legislature weighed in on the topic of border security this week. Senators T.J. Shope and Priya Sundareshan debated the issue on social media after Sundareshan reposted a video targeting the Trump administration for environmental abuses and more, writing, “Horrific, permanent destruction of our Sonoran desert treasures, just to hastily and shoddily construct an ineffective barrier and monument to racism.”
Shope responded, “Chair of Dem AZ Senate election effort believes securing our border is ‘monument to racism.’”
Senator Sundareshan retorted, “I think even your side knows that there are ways to use modern technology to achieve border security, instead of this medieval and ineffective approach. But y’all built a wall to prove you were ‘doing something.’”
I think even your side knows that there are ways to use modern technology to achieve border security, instead of this medieval and ineffective approach. But y'all built a wall to prove you were "doing something". Who's the 🤡?
Shope volleyed, “My side knows an all-of-the-above approach works. Physical barriers, law enforcement officers, and yes, modern technology. Not sure why that’s so hard…”
My side knows an all-of-the-above approach works. Physical barriers, law enforcement officers, and yes, modern technology. Not sure why that’s so hard… https://t.co/PPAFefttLe
Arizona Democratic lawmakers representing the border issued a public announcement on Tuesday declaring the border to be improved.
Neither of the senators behind the announcement, Brian Fernandez (D-LD23) and Rosanna Gabaldon (D-LD21), acknowledged the state of the border as a crisis.
"Despite the sensationalized reporting about the border, we are trending in the right direction."
— Arizona Senate Democrats (@AZSenateDems) August 1, 2023
Gabaldon indicated that ongoing concerns over the border were overblown, likening the border to a “political pawn” used to score points for voting bases. Gabaldon said that the 25 percent decline in border arrests last month and the decline in border encounters indicate an improvement in border security.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) documented about 144,600 encounters last month, a decline from the 206,700 encounters in May. Last month’s encounters were 63,200 less than last June’s total, and 44,400 less than the total for June 2021. However, the total remains four times as many as the total for June 2020 (33,000) and 40,200 more than June 2019.
Under President Joe Biden, there has been an historic total of nearly 5.7 million illegal immigrant encounters at the southwest border.
With one more month in this fiscal year, terrorist illegal immigrant apprehensions by CBP at the southern border have reached 140, already surpassing last year’s total of 98.
Gabaldon did allude that illegal immigrants do continue to suffer in their attempts to evade legal ports of entry on their journey to the U.S., though she didn’t expand on her remark.
“We must begin to recognize the human cost of failing to address the border properly,” said Gabaldon.
Fernandez said that the public’s current understanding of the border as a crisis was due to “misinformation” and “pointing fingers” to assign blame. Fernandez added that reporting over the border crisis is “sensationalized” due to the decline in encounters and arrests.
Fernandez further said that leadership, including Gov. Katie Hobbs, were taking the right actions to mitigate the border crisis. He cited one meeting with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas as proof of action.
“Governor Hobbs has already made a concerted effort to address our border needs,” said Fernandez.
Hobbs also held listening sessions in March to better gain a grasp on the state of the border. That same month, Hobbs began the process of ending former Gov. Doug Ducey’s Border Strike Force. Hobbs already removed the shipping containers closing up the border wall installed in the waning weeks of the Ducey administration.
The senators called for increased funding for legal ports of entry, declaring that’s where a majority of illicit trafficking occurs. The pair also called for citizenship opportunities for illegal immigrants.
“It is our responsibility to better protect our communities and those seeking asylum,” said Gabaldon.
“Our policies must offer a pathway to citizenship for those paying into our economy and communities,” said Fernandez. “It’s time we look at our immigration policy and present Arizona with a pathway forward that offers security and opportunity for all.”
The southern border hasn’t been alone in handling the illegal immigrant influx: the northern border has seen a marked increase in attempted illegal entries, especially by those wanted on criminal or terrorist charges. In June, Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) began investigating reports of the northern border left unmanned while remaining open for 24 hours.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels was asked to address the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary last week about the southwest border crisis, and he did not waste the opportunity, expressing frustration with how the Biden administration is avoiding the situation.
“Our southern border, against all public comfort statements out of Washington, D.C., is in the worst shape I have ever seen it,” Dannels testified. “When one looks at Public Safety, National Security, and Humanitarian, our southern border is the largest crime scene in the country.”
Dannels, who is the immediate past-president of the Arizona Sheriffs Association and chair of the National Sheriffs Association Border Security, told Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan and the committee he has personally experienced “the good, the bad, and the ugly” while working in border communities for nearly 40 years.
The sheriff acknowledged there “has always” been some border-related crimes such as illicit drugs, human smuggling, and weapons trafficking by Cartels. But prior to President Joe Biden taking office in January 2021, Cochise County was “one on the safest border counties” thanks to a cooperative effort that included enforcing the law, Dannels explained.
But Dannels told the Congressional committee he and other sheriffs have had “little to no success” in trying to partner with the White House to address the growing crisis caused by Biden’s open border policies the last two years.
As a result, the “intellectual avoidance” of border issues by Biden is being exploited by the Cartels to support their reign of “violence, fear, and greed,” Dannels said.
“Violence against innocent citizens, public officials, law enforcement, and rival drug / human trafficking groups in Mexico continues to escalate,” Dannels testified, adding it has left communities in Cochise County feeling “neglected and abandoned.”
Cochise County typically does not experience the type of mass self-surrenders seen in Yuma and some border crossings in Texas. Instead, the county’s 80 miles of international border are preferred by what Dannels called “Fight & Flight” crossers, many of whom are convicted criminals who go to great lengths to avoid detection.
This has now resulted in an all-time high of border crimes in the county, Dannels testified. And it is not just property crimes the sheriff was referring to – he pointed to a significant uptick in aggravated assaults, injury traffic accidents, and homicides directly related to Cartels exploiting the border.
According to Dannels, Mexican drug trafficking organizations operating in Cochise County “are highly sophisticated and innovative in their transportation methods” and utilize “sophisticated and technical communications and counter surveillance equipment to counter law enforcements interdiction tactics and strategies.”
It raises the question, the sheriff noted, of who actually controls our borders.
“By allowing our border security mission and immigration laws to be discretionary, these Criminal Cartels continue to be the true winners,” Dannels testified, adding that the continuance of deaths and hardships as Congress and the Biden administration “intentionally avoids reality is gross negligence.”
Dannels provided the House Judiciary Committee with several suggestions for how the federal government could quickly secure the border and address the violence.
“One would hope the priority of securing our border doesn’t become just about a price tag and/or political posturing, but rather the legal and moral requirement to safeguard all of America, which so many heroic Americans have already paid the ultimate price for,” Dannels said.
Dannels reiterated his frustration later in the week during an interview with KFYI’s James T. Harris.
“We have a border that is out of control,” Dannels told Harris, adding that his pleas did not appear to resonate with many of those in power in the Beltway because “it’s not in their Washington, D.C. backyard.”
Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) filed impeachment articles against Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Wednesday.
In a press release, Biggs accused Mayorkas of intentional dereliction of duty and committing crimes against the nation.
“Secretary Mayorkas is the chief architect of the migration and drug invasion at our southern border. His policies have incentivized more than 5 million illegal aliens to show up at our southern border—an all-time figure,” said Biggs. “Instead of enforcing the laws on the books and deporting or detaining these illegal aliens, the vast majority of them are released into the interior and never heard from again.”
Biggs also claimed that Mayorkas was facilitating drug trafficking by stalling border wall construction and pulling law enforcement away from the border.
“His conduct is willful and intentional. He is not enforcing the law and is violating his oath of office,” said Biggs.
Today I am filing impeachment articles against DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
I have a congressional responsibility to impeach figures who are in dereliction of their duties and commit crimes.
If we don't impeach him, his attack on this nation will continue.
Biggs was joined by 28 legislators, including fellow Arizona Reps. Eli Crane (R-AZ-02), Paul Gosar (R-AZ-09), and Debbie Lesko (R-AZ-08).
Other legislators that cosponsored the resolution were: Reps. Jeff Duncan (R-SC-03), Mary Miller (R-IL-15), Ralph Norman (R-SC-05), Michael Cloud (R-TX-27), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA-14), Lauren Boebert (R-CO-03), Andy Ogles (R-TN-05), Bill Posey (R-FL-08), Matt Gaetz (R-FL-01), Andrew Clyde (R-GA-09), Nancy Mace (R-SC-01), Claudia Tenney (R-NY-24), Brian Babin (R-TX-36), Matt Rosendale (R-MT-02), Troy Nehls (R-TX-22), Ryan Zinke (R-MT-01), Randy Weber (R-TX-14), Glenn Grothman (R-WI-06), Pat Fallon (R-TX-04), Greg Steube (R-FL-17), Ronny Jackson (R-TX-13), and Kevin Hern (R-OK-01).
This resolution is the latest in Biggs’ ongoing effort to impeach Mayorkas since 2021. In an op-ed last March, Biggs outlined how Mayorkas contravened federal law.
Awaiting illegal immigrants on the U.S. side of the border are bus stops, portable toilets, washing stations, relief workers, water and food, and more. Foreigners who break the law are rewarded under Mayorkas, Biggs argued.
However, Mayorkas worked hard to target and punish American citizens who refused executive dictates and guidance on COVID-19.
Under the Biden administration, border numbers are at an all-time high across the board. Over 4.6 million illegal immigrants were apprehended at the border as of December, with over 1.2 million “gotaways” estimated. At this rate, there may be over 9.2 million illegal immigrants by the end of Biden’s first term in 2024. The Biden administration’s current policy usually results in catch and release for most of these illegal immigrants.
Illegal immigrants aren’t the only ones taking advantage of the Biden administration’s border policy: terrorists have benefitted as well. There were seven times more terrorists apprehended at the southern border in fiscal year 2022, and more than double apprehended in this current fiscal year, than in all the years of Trump’s administration combined.
Drug trafficking is also at an all-time high. This has led to a surge in fentanyl overdoses and deaths in border states like Arizona.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
