by Ethan Faverino | Mar 3, 2026 | News
By Ethan Faverino |
Yuma Sector Border Patrol Agents have arrested a cartel smuggling scout operating in the remote Sierra Pinta Mountains. The apprehension, resulting from an ongoing investigation by the Yuma Sector Targeting and Intelligence Division, disrupts cartel reconnaissance efforts that facilitate the illegal movement of aliens through the Wellton Station Area.
Cartel scouts position themselves at high vantage points in the rugged mountain terrain to monitor law enforcement activities, including the movement of Border Patrol agents and Air and Marine Operations assets.
By maintaining extended surveillance—often living in the mountains for days—these scouts enable smuggling organizations to evade detection and coordinate illegal crossings.
During the operation, agents located the suspect at a scouting site equipped for prolonged missions. A search revealed food supplies, sustainment gear, and a solar panel used to power batteries for surveillance and communications equipment.
Acting Chief Patrol Agent Dustin Caudle stated, “The arrest of this dangerous smuggler is a perfect example of a unified border enforcement team working together to achieve a successful law enforcement outcome. These ruthless transnational criminal organizations have no regard for human life, and the dismantling of these cartel networks ensures a secure border that increases the safety of agents and our communities.”
The subject, who has two prior expulsions under Title 42, was transported to Wellton Station for processing and record checks. The individual will face prosecution by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona and eventual removal proceedings.
The Yuma Sector intends to pursue sentencing enhancements related to scouting activities in support of transnational criminal organizations. The subject is being charged with illegal entry under 8 U.S.C. § 1325, with potential enhancements for scouting at sentencing.
The Yuma Border Patrol Sector Prosecutions Unit collaborates closely with the U.S. Attorney’s Office to seek the maximum application for offenses involving transporting and harboring illegal aliens in the United States.
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Ethan Faverino | Dec 13, 2025 | News
By Ethan Faverino |
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), through U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), has achieved unprecedented border security milestones, with illegal border crossings reaching the lowest levels ever recorded at the start of a fiscal year.
Preliminary data for October and November 2025 show a continued historic decline in apprehensions and encounters, reflecting the effectiveness of President Trump’s policies and leadership.
Since President Trump took office on January 20, 2025, total enforcement encounters along the southwest border through the end of November stand at 117,105—37% below the monthly average of 185,625 recorded during the Biden administration.
U.S. Border Patrol apprehensions have averaged under 10,000 per month, described by DHS as “a level of deterrence unmatched in modern border history”.
Daily apprehensions along the southwest border now average just 245—fewer than 11 per hour—and a stunning 95% reduction from the Biden-era daily average of 5,110 (February 2021-December 2024). For comparison, December 2023 saw 336 illegal crossers apprehended every hour during the height of the prior administration’s border crisis—more than today’s entire daily total.
In October 2025, nationwide Border Patrol encounters and apprehensions totaled 30,573, distinctively down from 142,742 in October 2024, 309,605 in October 2023, and 278,317 in October 2022.
Preliminary data for November 2025 show 30,367 encounters, slightly lower than October’s record low. Combined, October and November recorded just 60,940 encounters—the lowest two-month start to any fiscal year on record and 28% below the previous low of 84,293 set in FY2012.
“Once again, we have a record low number of encounters at the border and the 7th straight month of zero releases. Month after month, we are delivering results that were once thought impossible: the most secure border in history and unmatched enforcement successes,” said Secretary Kristi Noem. “Thanks to President Trump’s leadership and the dedication of DHS law enforcement, America’s borders are safer than ever before.”
Every individual apprehended is processed for removal in accordance with the law, reversing Biden-era policies that pulled agents from the field to facilitate mass releases, leaving hundreds of miles of border unpatrolled for extended periods.
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Matthew Holloway | Sep 12, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
In just the first week of September, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona brought criminal charges related to illegal immigration against 218 defendants.
Among these cases, 107 aliens faced charges for illegally entering the United States, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). 100 aliens were charged for re-entering unlawfully, along with eleven suspects charged for “smuggling illegal aliens into and within” the state as part of ‘Operation Take Back America’.
As reported by the U.S. Attorney’s Office (USAO), the September cases were either referred or supported by Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
In the previous week, the last of August, 233 individuals were charged, showing a slight dip in apprehensions week-over-week. Still, the DOJ has maintained an overall consistent pace, with 107 cases in which aliens illegally re-entered the U.S., and 108 aliens charged for illegally entering.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office highlighted a few notable cases, including one involving a Mexican national, Jose Uriel Meraz-Aguilar, 20, who U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested along with three other people. Aguilar was reportedly “wearing camouflage and carpet shoes,” and “attempted to travel north through the desert toward Interstate 8, but became separated,” a common scenario for human smugglers. Two of his companions were rescued and received medical care for dehydration and heat exhaustion.
According to the USAO, “Agents learned that Meraz-Aguilar was being paid to serve as a foot guide for the Salazares Cartel, and that he had left the individuals behind in the desert on cartel instructions.”
In a similar case, Edwuin Lucino Hernandez-Cordero, also a Mexican national, was charged with Conspiracy to Transport an Illegal Alien. The USAO’s report stated, “Hernandez-Cordero had previously been pulled over in July 2025 while transporting five illegal aliens. Subsequent investigation linked Hernandez-Cordero to stash houses in Glendale and Phoenix run by a human smuggling organization. Hernandez-Cordero and his associates were identified as drivers and caretakers involved in transporting illegal aliens throughout the United States for profit.”
The DOJ identified these cases as part of Operation Take Back America.
In aggregate, the DOJ publicly reported weekly data under ‘Operation Take Back America’ shows that for the past 27 weeks since the operation’s announcement, about 20,000 individuals have faced charges ranging from immigration violations, drug trafficking, and firearms offenses, to conspiring with narco-terrorist cartels and transnational criminal organizations.
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Matthew Holloway | Sep 11, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Border Patrol is stepping up enforcement along the U.S.-Mexico border with new “prosecution enhancements,” according to Jason E. Schneider, Acting Chief Patrol Agent for the Rio Grande Valley. The policy applies harsher federal charges to both illegal aliens crossing the border and smugglers.
In a post to X, Chief Schneider announced that the “RGV Border Patrol is now using tougher federal charges against illegal crossings & smuggling, including: 18 USC 2339 – Aiding Terrorists, 8 USC 1326 – Illegal Reentry, 8 USC 1324 – Alien Smuggling, 8 USC 1325 – Illegal Entry.”
In an infographic, the post from Schneider announced, “The Border is Closed.”
Under 18 U.S.C. § 2339A and 18 U.S.C. § 2339B, U.S. law says, “Whoever provides material support or resources or conceals or disguises the nature, location, source, or ownership of material support or resources, knowing or intending that they are to be used in preparation for, or in carrying out” a terrorist attack will face punishments ranging from fines to 15 years in prison, or if the death of any person should be connected to their action, a life sentence.
In a follow-up comment, Schneider wrote, “Cross illegally & you will face serious consequences. Honor First!”
Schneider was named acting chief patrol agent following the removal of former RGV Chief Patrol Agent Gloria Chavez. In a statement released to Valley Central in early August, U.S. CBP Commissioner Rodney S. Scott explained, “CBP does not comment on specific disciplinary actions,” however, he alluded to “misconduct—on or off duty—by a few,” and “refusing to accept misconduct of even a few, regardless of rank.”
He stated in full:
“We will continue to adhere to our core values: Integrity is our cornerstone. We are guided by the highest ethical and moral principles. Our actions must bring honor to ourselves and our agency. Misconduct—on or off duty—by a few distracts from the honorable service of the many. CBP leadership under the Trump Administration are extremely proud to support the agents that honorably protect America every day by refusing to accept misconduct of even a few, regardless of rank.”
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Ethan Faverino | Aug 27, 2025 | News
By Ethan Faverino |
The U.S. Border Patrol’s Yuma Sector has established a National Defense Area within its area of operations to boost security along the southern border and address illegal cross-border activities.
The designated zone, neighboring the Roosevelt Reservation along the Barry M. Goldwater Range and the Cabeza Prieta Wildlife Refuge, aims to enhance border protection and mitigate environmental damage caused by illicit activities.
The National Defense Area authorizes military personnel to temporarily detain individuals who unlawfully enter the restricted zone.
Detainees will be transferred to U.S. Border Patrol agents and may face criminal charges for violating defense property regulations, unauthorized entry onto military property, and illegal entry, in addition to removal proceedings.
Clear signage has been posted throughout the National Defense Area to warn that unauthorized entry is prohibited under federal regulations.
The signage reads:
“WARNING
RESTRICTED AREA:
This Department of Defense property has been declared a restricted area by authority of the commander in accordance with the provisions of the directive issued by the Secretary of Defense, pursuant to the provisions of Section 21, Internal Security Act of 1950.
UNAUTHORIZED ENTRY IS PROHIBITED
All persons and vehicles entering herein may be detained and searched. Photographing or making notes, drawings, maps, or graphic representations of the area or its activities are prohibited unless specifically authorized by the commander. Any such material found in the possession of unauthorized persons will be confiscated.”
This initiative mirrors similar National Defense Areas established in Texas and New Mexico, designed to curb illicit drug and human smuggling while reducing environmental degradation caused by cross-border foot traffic, litter, and vehicle activity.
The Yuma Sector’s National Defense Area demonstrates a continued commitment to defend the southern border, protecting national security, and preserving the region’s natural resources.
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
