Border
A bill that would waive the required pre-employment polygraph examination for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) candidates under certain circumstances was recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.
Introduced by U.S. Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ), the Anti-Border Corruption... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents stationed at the Sarita Checkpoint in Rio Grande Valley, Texas recently seized more than 44 pounds of cocaine in a single incident.
The incident began as agents referred a local commercial bus for a secondary inspection after a K-9 unit alerted... Read More »
Over the Memorial Day weekend, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents stationed at various ports of entry in California intercepted a total of 270 pounds of narcotics and apprehended 14 fugitives with outstanding felony warrants.
From May 27-29, CBP officers seized approximately 120... Read More »
During a recent hearing of the Senate Appropriations Committee on Homeland Security, U.S. Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) discussed the importance of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) for securing the nation’s international borders.
In speaking to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary John... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently approved an application from the Reno-Tahoe Airport to participate in the agency’s Reimbursable Services Program (RSP), which allows the airport to hire additional CBP personnel to help process international travelers.
CBP’s approval also... Read More »
In the wake of the deadly bombing in Manchester, United Kingdom, which killed 22 people, U.S. Rep. Will Hurd (R-TX) introduced two separate bills that aim to prevent would-be terrorists from traveling in and out of Western countries undetected.
The first bill, the Strong Visa Integrity Secures... Read More »
A report that details the entry and exit data among nonimmigrant visitors into the United States for FY2016 was recently released by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The report specifically provides information on immigrant departures and overstays from each country for... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents stationed at the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa Ports of Entry in California recently seized three separate shipments of illicit narcotics, totaling 370 pounds.
The narcotics, which included 316 pounds of methamphetamine and 55 pounds of cocaine,... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers stationed at the Hidalgo International Bridge in Texas recently intercepted a large shipment of liquid methamphetamine valued at approximately $3.7 million.
The incident occurred May 14 when a 20-year old female U.S. citizen approached the bridge... Read More »
A bill that addresses many of the staffing shortfalls seen at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) stations was recently approved by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
The Boots on the Border Act was cosponsored by U.S. Sens. Ron Johnson (R-WI), Jeff Flake... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Tom Carper (D-DE) and Kamala Harris (D-CA) recently sent a public letter to U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary John Kelly requesting information regarding the department’s use of privately operated immigration detention facilities.
The senators’ concerns stem... Read More »
A six-week, nationwide gang operation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) unit netted a total of 1,378 arrests across the country, the largest such operation conducted by HSI to date.
In total 1,098 individuals were arrested on federal... Read More »
A single engine marine vessel, carrying approximately 159 pounds of cocaine, was recently intercepted north of Arecibo, Puerto Rico by officers from U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) Air and Marine Operations (AMO) and the Puerto Rico Police Department.
The incident began as a CBP... Read More »
The fragmented, ineffective set of information technology (IT) systems stifles efforts by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to track visa overstays, according to a recent report published by the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG).... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has made progress during the past few years but faces numerous challenges strengthening America’s visa security, members of the House Committee on Homeland Security learned during a task force hearing last week.
“This is a critical time for our... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Ron Johnson (R-WI), chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Claire McCaskill (D-MO), the committee’s ranking member, recently sent a public letter to the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Inspector General John Roth, regarding assaults... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) efforts to address high risk travelers and strengthen visa security programs have experienced progress in some areas and challenges in others, according to a recently-published report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).
GAO... Read More »
A bill authored by U.S. Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ) to address staffing shortages among U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers and Border Patrol agents by getting rid of duplicative mandated polygraph tests was recently approved by the House Committee on Homeland Security.
McSally’s... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers assigned to the port of entries in San Diego and Imperial Valley counties in California recently intercepted more than 700 pounds of narcotics and apprehended 13 fugitives with outstanding felony warrants over the past weekend.
In total,... Read More »
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently released a report on the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) efforts into curbing subterranean, aerial, and maritime drug smuggling, stating that while the number of incidents have declined over the past five years, the department could... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents stationed at the Dennis DeConcini crossing at the Port of Nogales in Arizona recently stopped attempted fentanyl smuggling by a single individual.
The incident began as officers stopped a 28-year old Mexican national driving a Chevrolet SUV for a... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ) introduced last week bipartisan legislation that builds on the Anti-Border Corruption Act of 2010, which addresses staffing shortages of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers and Border Patrol agents along both international U.S. borders.
The legislation... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Science and Technology (S&T) Directorate recently entered into a partnership with Asymmetric Technologies worth $199,814.31 to enhance small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) within Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
CBP said its use of sUAS... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents assigned to the Tucson Sector recently interdicted a human smuggling attempt at the State Route 86 immigration checkpoint near Three Points, Arizona.
The incident began as agents stopped a Chevrolet Impala sedan with two visible occupants for a... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ) recently called on U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Acting Commissioner Kevin McAleenan to expedite the modernization of the Douglas Port of Entry (POE) in Arizona, which was last renovated more than 20 years ago.
McSally also called for the construction... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed this week the Aviation Employee Screening and Security Enhancement Act, authored by U.S. Rep. John Katko (R-NY), which aims to strengthen security at the nation’s airports by providing enhanced screening procedures for airport and aviation... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) on Tuesday introduced the Ensuring Lawful Collection of Hidden Assets to Provide Order (EL CHAPO) Act, which reserves forfeited assets from drug lords to pay for various security measures along the U.S.-Mexico border, including President Trump’s proposed border wall.... Read More »
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) division recently completed a four-day immigration operation, the result of which led to the arrest of 95 undocumented migrants with criminal histories throughout the southeast Texas area.
The agency... Read More »
The Democratic members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) recently published a report detailing the potential costs for President Trump’s proposed border wall with Mexico, with a cost estimate reaching as high as $70 billion.
The report’s estimate also... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Field Operations (OFO) agents stationed at the International Falls Port of Entry in Minnesota recently apprehended an individual wanted as a material witness in a homicide case.
The incident occurred on April 16 as 38-year old Abraham Roberts... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents stationed at the Eagle Pass Port of Entry recently arrested a 26-year old woman from Eagle Pass, Texas for narcotics smuggling.
The incident occurred on April 12 as the woman attempted to enter the United States though the pedestrian lane of the... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents working at various points of entry in California apprehended 28 individuals with outstanding felony warrants over the last week, two of which were wanted for homicide.
The fugitives were wanted on a litany of charges, ranging from larceny and... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) Air and Marine Operations (AMO) recently seized a vessel near the southern coast of Puerto Rico carrying approximately 1,320 pounds of cocaine.
The incident began on April 12 as a CBP DHC-8 Maritime Patrol Aircraft crew detected a suspicious go-fast... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released this week its electronic device search statistics for FY2017, which details the number of electronic devices the agency searched from international travelers as they passed through its various checkpoints.
In total, the agency searched 14,993... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agents assigned to the El Centro Sector in California recently apprehended two individuals suspected of drug smuggling and a previously-deported sex offender later that same day.
The first incident began as agents assigned to the Highway 86 checkpoint... Read More »
