Legislation would establish arms-trafficking team within DHS

Legislation recently introduced in the House of Representatives would establish a Border Enforcement Security Team (BEST) within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) focused solely on reducing arms trafficking.

There are currently 57 security teams within DHS, but none with this dedicated purpose.

Officers from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and other appropriate law enforcement officials would comprise the team.

The unit would apprehend arms smugglers, reduce conflicting arms trafficking investigations between DHS and the U.S. Department of Justice, ensure coordination with the ATF for data tracking of seized firearms, and reduce the smuggling of weapons, weapon parts, munitions, explosives, and related items.

“American-made weapons trafficked across our southern border have helped fuel the rise of Mexican drug cartels,” said Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI), who introduced the bill, said. “As cartel-related violence continues to escalate, it’s clear we need resources dedicated to preventing dangerous weapons from getting to these thugs in the first place.”

The Illicit Arms Trafficking Security Enforcement Act is part of a broader package of immigration bills.

Of the firearms Mexican security forces seized from cartel operatives in 2016, 70 percent came from the United States, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office.