Officials from several federal law enforcement agencies on Friday touted efforts to cut the supply of weapons moving from the U.S. into Mexico.
While the public focuses on keeping narcotics and immigrants south of the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ border, an equally important initiative it to keep weapons and cash from being smuggled into Mexico to be used by cartels, they said.
“We have pivoted, and we needed to pivot to think of these cartels (as terrorist organizations)†Interim U.S. Attorney of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Timothy Courchaine said during Friday’s news conference near the Nogales port of entry. “Because the violence in Mexico, the violence they introduced into the United States, is abhorrent ... They send drugs and people north, and they profit from it. And in return, they get guns and money south.â€
The guns and cash help cartels expand their criminal enterprises that are responsible for “the most heinous, violent crimes affecting the communities and neighborhoods in the U.S.,†said Brendan Iber, the special agent in charge of the ATF.
People are also reading…
Guadalupe Ramirez, director of operations for the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ office of Customs and Border Protection, said the agency’s focus on outbound inspections has created a “significant increase in the cost of doing business for violent transnational organizations and will continue to serve as a valuable tool in our efforts for border operations.†He noted that in addition to weapons, these searches have stopped child abduction, turned up fleeing criminals, controlled substances, currency and stolen vehicles.
Tools, including weapons and currency-detecting canines, are utilized to search vehicles and people headed south at the border. New trafficking trends and concealment methods are popping up every day, but the trickier the smugglers get, so do the severity of punishments for their alleged crimes.
“I’m telling you right now ... the ATF will work day and night, weekends, holidays, whatever it takes to identify these individuals, these organizations, these groups that are responsible for trafficking all these firearms over there,†Iber said.
The ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Field Office of Operations, which is responsible for all of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s legal ports of entry, has seen a slight increase in the number of weapons and ammunition seizures headed south into Mexico, the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Republic reported. In the first six months of the 2025 fiscal year, officers had 49 seizure events, confiscating 29 handguns, 56 long arms and three explosives, the Republic said, citing CBP’s open data portal.
Trump's DOJ reverses course after judges reject 'baffling' argument on foreign students
