AUSTIN – Governor Greg Abbott, the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), and the Texas National Guard are continuing to work together to secure the border; stop the smuggling of drugs, weapons, and people into Texas; and prevent, detect, and interdict transnational criminal activity between ports of entry.
Since the launch of Operation Lone Star, the multi-agency effort has led to over 484,100 illegal immigrant apprehensions and more than 36,600 criminal arrests, with more than 33,200 felony charges reported. In the fight against the fentanyl crisis, Texas law enforcement has seized over 435 million lethal doses of fentanyl during this border mission.
Texas has also bused:
Over 12,500 migrants to Washington, D.C. since April 2022
Over 23,800 migrants to New York City since August 2022
Over 19,100 migrants to Chicago since August 2022
Over 3,200 migrants to Philadelphia since November 2022
Over 6,500 migrants to Denver since May 18
Over 1,100 migrants to Los Angeles since June 14
Operation Lone Star continues to fill the dangerous gaps created by the Biden Administration’s refusal to secure the border. Every individual who is apprehended or arrested and every ounce of drugs seized would have otherwise made their way into communities across Texas and the nation due to President Joe Biden’s open border policies.
The Texas Legislature this week passedSenate Bill 4, which creates criminal penalties for illegal entry into Texas and authorizes the removal of illegal immigrants apprehended at the border. Governor Abbott said he will sign this historic legislation into law.
Texas continues to make progress on construction of its historic border wall to stem the flow of illegal immigration into our state. Texas is the first and only state to build its own border wall.
The Texas National Guard is adding the Mobile Modular Surveillance System (M2S2) to its border security resources to help prevent and deter transnational criminal activity and illegal immigration. The M2S2 is an advanced fixed and mobile surveillance technology system mounted on a truck platform that can observe activity for miles.
It consists of a retractable mast that can extend 10-20 feet with cameras, allowing high-definition, low-light viewing, night-vision capability, and a distance-measuring laser range finder. Cameras feature digital and optical zoom functions along with infrared detection. A ground surveillance radar system detects movement and activity and cues the crew to view with the camera. All law enforcement partners can observe what the truck is seeing in real time through both radar and camera.
“From the ground up, this truck was designed to be an information center,” said Jason Hart. “We’ll be able to see all our forces that are in that ground space and provide that perfect situational awareness to the ground force commanders to be able to maneuver the pieces they need to do interdiction.”
As Governor Abbott prepares to sign historic border security legislation into law, NewsNation reports from the border on the dangers migrants face as they attempt to illegally enter the state. This week, hundreds of illegal immigrants used a system of ropes and human chains to cross the Rio Grande River, with several people swept away in the dangerous current before regaining their footing.
“Twenty-three years in the Border Patrol, and I have never seen such a chaotic border,” said Texas Border Czar Mike Banks. “I’ve never seen this much death.”
Operation Lone Star has rescued more than 900 children from human smugglers, as ruthless Mexican cartels continue to exploit President Biden’s open border policies. DPS Lt. Chris Olivarez recently told Newsmax that the Biden Administration has no way of knowing what happens to the smuggled children who are not rescued by law enforcement, and many children end up as victims of forced sex or labor trafficking.
“That’s the disturbing part, that there really is no answer to what happens to these children,” said Lt. Olivarez. “Our own federal government does not have an answer to that. They don’t acknowledge that, and that’s what’s really disturbing as a country.”
DPS special agents from the Criminal Investigations Division assigned to Operation Lone Star seized weapons, body armor, and ammunition from a human smuggling ring with ties to the Nuevo Cartel De Juarez and La Linea Cartel operating in West Texas and New Mexico. Agents first identified a human smuggling organization in October.
The extensive investigation and collaboration with other law enforcement agencies resulted in the seizure of 10 firearms, body armor, and thousands of rounds of ammunition.
