Legacy Media Turns On Waterworks For Another Criminal Migrant
'The legacy media must be hard-pressed for sob stories.'
Media Insists Illegal Alien Was ‘Wrongly Deported.’ Court Docs Say He’s An MS-13 Human Trafficker
The left that marketed him as the 'wrongfully deported Maryland dad' now downplays his alleged crimes to fit their messaging.ICE deports illegal immigrant wanted for human smuggling that led to the deaths of 3 minors
An illegal immigrant was deported back to his home country of the Dominican Republic, where he was wanted for human smuggling, which resulted in the deaths of three minors.
Edgar Batista Matos is a Dominican national who was deported last week by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE coordinated with the Dominican National Police to deport Batista Matos.
'ICE prioritizes the arrest and removal of criminal alien fugitives.'
On March 4, Batista Matos was placed aboard an ICE removal flight that transported the illegal alien from Miami International Airport to Las Americas International Airport in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Local law enforcement in the Dominican Republic took the illegal migrant into custody at the airport.
Batista Matos has reportedly been deported at least five times.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said in a statement that Batista Matos was first deported in October 2010 "when he was encountered by the U.S. Border Patrol after he entered illegally near Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico."
Batista Matos was also deported in 2011, 2019, and 2023. ICE did not provide details of the prior deportations.
In September 2024, Batista Matos was arrested by police in San Juan, Puerto Rico, after law enforcement in the Dominican Republic issued a warrant for his arrest for his connection with the fatal illegal alien smuggling venture.
"The return of this fugitive to the Dominican Republic is a prime example of how ICE works closely with our international law enforcement partners to identify, locate, and remove criminal aliens who are wanted in their country for allegedly committing crimes," said ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Miami acting Field Office Director Juan Lopez Vega. "ICE prioritizes the arrest and removal of criminal alien fugitives. As a result, our communities are safer and more secure."
As Blaze News reported last month, Venezuela has agreed to repatriate its citizens who are illegally living in the United States, including members of the violent Tren de Aragua gang. The deal also brought back six U.S. citizens who were being detained by the regime of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro following the country’s July presidential election.
President Donald Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social, "It is so good to have the Venezuela Hostages back home and, very important to note, that Venezuela has agreed to receive, back into their Country, all Venezuela illegal aliens who were encamped in the U.S., including gang members of Tren de Aragua."
“Venezuela has further agreed to supply the transportation back,” Trump noted. “We are in the process of removing record numbers of illegal aliens from all Countries, and all Countries have agreed to accept these illegal aliens back. Furthermore, record numbers of criminals are being removed from our Country, and the Border numbers are the strongest they have been since the First Term of the Trump Administration!”
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Human smugglers use TikTok to promote illegal border crossings from Canada to US: Report
Human smugglers are reportedly using social media platforms to brazenly advertise their illegal border crossing services from Canada to the United States.
The New York Post reported on Saturday that it discovered several TikTok accounts created by smugglers in Canada to promote their illicit trafficking businesses. While some accounts have been quickly reported and removed, new ones continue to appear on the platform, the outlet noted.
'The service was outstanding.'
The report found that smugglers charge foreign nationals up to $5,000 for illegally crossing into the U.S. One social media post obtained by the outlet claimed to offer the "cheapest" price at $4,000.
The Post contacted a smuggler who stated that the illegal crossing service would cost $4,500 per person to travel from Montreal to New York.
"When you ready to go, send me your ID," the smuggler told the news outlet. He also advertised a "group walk" to help five foreign nationals illegally enter the U.S.
The advertisements primarily target Indian nationals, the news outlet stated.
A TikTok post from one account read, "CAD to USA."
"Montreal to New York," it continued. "Same day entry."
The post, which featured a photograph of four men and an image of an American flag, promised that the illegal journey would be "100 percent safe," boasting a "safe route" into the U.S.
It also stated that foreign nationals could pay after reaching their destination.
The Post reported that another social media post similarly read, "Payment after reach."
"100% safe," it added.
The smuggler services reportedly depart from Montreal; Brampton, roughly 30 miles outside of Toronto; and Surrey, approximately 22 miles from Vancouver.
Foreign nationals can be dropped off in upstate New York or Washington, according to the posts.
One smuggler detailed the journey as a two-hour car ride followed by a 25-minute walk through the forest before reaching New York.
The social media accounts included testimonials from "satisfied customers" who described the journey as "easy" and "comfortable," the Post reported.
"The service was outstanding, we have come through very easily," one testimonial reportedly read.
Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) told the Post, "The Department of Justice should investigate how these apps are being utilized for nefarious activity and get cooperation from the companies that operate them."
Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.) told Fox News Digital, "The danger is they're gonna go where we're not."
"The northern border has had hundreds of crossings from people on the terrorist watch list," he added. "[There's] a lot of border and a lot of distance between officers."
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Border agent accused of being cartel member who smuggled illegal aliens into the US
A United States Customs and Border Protection agent stands accused of being a Mexican drug cartel member who exploited his position to smuggle illegal aliens into the country.
CBP officer Manuel Perez Jr., 32, was terminated from the agency when he was arrested on federal human- and drug-smuggling charges on February 8, according to the El Paso Times.
'By all measures, he lives in Mexico.'
Perez, a U.S. citizen born in California, was stationed at the Paso del Norte International Bridge in El Paso, Texas.
If found guilty, he could face up to a decade in prison.
A special agent with the CBP Office of Professional Responsibility testified that Perez was a member of a drug cartel.
“Multiple witnesses said he belonged to La Linea cartel in Mexico,” the special agent stated.
The agent explained that intercepted phone calls from smugglers promised a “100% guaranteed” border crossing, claiming that they had “the officer in their pocket.”
Perez’s lawyer, Ruben Ortiz, claimed that the alleged co-conspirators could be lying about his client’s involvement. He accused them of “pointing fingers, perhaps to gain favor from the government in their own cases.”
“The cooperating witnesses are telling them (federal investigators) whatever they want to hear for now,” Ortiz stated.
The agent testified that Perez admitted to federal investigators that he received $2,500 for each illegal alien he allowed to pass through his inspection lane at the southern border. Investigators revealed that Perez permitted a gray Nissan Pathfinder carrying illegal aliens to cross the border multiple times. The exact number of illegal immigrants, including children, that Perez allegedly allowed into the U.S. remains unclear.
Federal investigators estimated that Perez could have been paid up to $400,000 since December 2023 for his involvement in the illegal smuggling operation. He is also accused of participating in a cocaine distribution scheme from November 2019 through February 5, 2025.
Perez has no prior history of criminal activity or substance abuse.
The investigation into Perez uncovered that the CBP officer allegedly spent approximately 80% of his time in Mexico despite claiming he resided in El Paso.
“By all measures, he lives in Mexico,” prosecutors argued.
The special agent testified that Perez was always armed and had an armed security detail with him while he was in Mexico.
Ortiz stated that his client spent significant time in Mexico because he had a girlfriend living there.
One witness claimed that Perez had expressed a preference to be detained in Mexico if arrested so that he could continue his illegal activities from inside the jail.
Mexican agents reportedly searched Perez’s rental property in Juárez and discovered $18,000 in cash.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Miguel Torres rejected Ortiz’s request to release Perez on bond with GPS monitoring. The judge determined there was "no question" Perez posed a flight risk, citing the extensive time he spent in Mexico. Consequently, Perez will remain in jail without bond.
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6 Guatemalans arrested over deaths of more than 50 immigrants: 'Ruthless, callous, and dangerous'
U.S. law enforcement officials announced the arrest of six Guatemalan nationals allegedly involved in the deaths of more than 50 immigrants in an accident related to human smuggling in Mexico.
According to an indictment unsealed Monday, the U.S. Attorney's Office said Guatemalan police arrested four of the suspects in Guatemala. Another suspect was arrested at his home in Cleveland, Texas, and Guatemalan officials noted a sixth arrest.
'Human smugglers should heed these charges and arrests as a warning: you will be held accountable for your deadly crimes.'
The indictments were announced on the third anniversary of a horrendous semi-trailer truck crash in the Mexican state of Chiapas, during which more than 50 immigrants were killed, including children. Officials believe the truck was carrying at least 160 immigrants when it rolled over and crashed into a pedestrian bridge in Tuxtla Gutierrez. Another 100 immigrants were injured in the mass casualty event.
The indictment accused the suspects of conspiring to smuggle the immigrants through Mexico to the U.S. for payment and being responsible for the crash.
Among the charges against them are conspiracy, placing life in jeopardy, and causing serious bodily injury. Guatemalan officials said the U.S. is seeking extradition of four suspects arrested in Gautemala. They also said the smugglers were a part of a criminal organization called Los Quino.
“The tragedy that occurred three years ago today in Chiapas is further proof that human smugglers are ruthless, callous, and dangerous,” said U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas. "DHS will continue to disrupt and dismantle illegal human smuggling operations and help bring those who perpetrate such horror to justice.”
"Human smugglers should heed these charges and arrests as a warning: you will be held accountable for your deadly crimes,” said U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland.
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Cartel drones drop explosives near southern border
A Mexican cartel is using drones to “drop explosives” on a rival gang near the Arizona southern border, the New York Post reported, citing a recently leaked bulletin.
The United States Border Patrol’s Yuma Sector Intelligence Unit released a bulletin on Tuesday warning about the recent cartel activity along the U.S.-Mexico border. According to the alert, members of Los Salazar, a cell of the Sinaloa Cartel, are using drones with explosives to attack Los Pelones, a rival cartel. The activity is part of an ongoing conflict between the two cartels in Sonoyta, Mexico, roughly two miles from the border.
“Other confrontations between these two organization[s] have occurred along the border, south of Wellton Stations area of operations in recent months,” the bulletin read. “Agents are reminded to take any necessary precautions if drones are encountered or obse[rved] and report that activity up their chain of command as soon as possible.”
In March, Air Force General Gregory Guillot told the Senate Armed Services Committee that, in his estimation, there are “over 1,000” drone incursions each month at the southern border, calling the number of encounters “alarming,” Blaze News previously reported. Guillot noted that no one knows the exact number of incursions but that it is “in the thousands.”
At the time, he told lawmakers, “I haven’t seen any of them manifest in a threat to the level of national defense, but I see the potential only growing.”
Cartel spotters typically use the drones to spot gaps in the border wall where they can sneak past law enforcement agents undetected. Guillot stated that some of the drones may be used to carry illicit drugs over the border.
Last year, Rio Grande Valley Sector Chief Patrol Agent Gloria Chavez told the House Oversight Committee that more than 10,000 drone incursions and 25,000 sightings were reported over a one-year period.
“We have made great progress in countering the threat of small, unmanned platforms,” Chavez said. “However, the adversaries have 17 times the number of drones, twice the amount of flight hours, and unlimited funding to grow their operations.”
In 2023, Customs and Border Protection called human smugglers’ use of drone technology a “growing trend.”
The Associated Press recently reported that the Mexican army has stated that some of its soldiers have been killed by cartel drones dropping explosives.
Mexican Defense Secretary Gen. Luis Cresencio Sandoval stated, “Our personnel have suffered wounds, and some of our troops have even died."
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Mexican cartels offer VIP smuggling packages to illegal aliens — $6,000 to $15,000 per person
Mexican cartels are offering VIP smuggling packages to foreign nationals seeking to cross into the United States illegally, USA Today recently reported.
Sources told the news outlet that the cartels are charging anywhere from $6,000 to $15,000 per person to smuggle individuals through a network of underground drainage tunnels that stretch from Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, to El Paso, Texas.
'Now 60 to 70% of their focus is migrant smuggling.'
The cartels' customers are given a code word that identifies which criminal organization they are traveling with to signal to local law enforcement and rival cartels not to harass the group.
La Linea, a cartel based in Juárez, has been smuggling at least 1,000 illegal aliens across the U.S. border through the tunnel system every month, a senior Mexican official told USA Today.
Arturo Velasco, head of the anti-kidnapping unit at the Chihuahua attorney general's office, told the news outlet, "Criminals have shifted from their primary business, which was drug trafficking."
"Now 60 to 70% of their focus is migrant smuggling," Velasco said. "A kilo of cocaine might bring in $1,500, but the risk is very high. The cost-benefit of trafficking a person is $10,000, $12,000, $15,000."
Ines Barrios de la O, an immigration specialist at the Autonomous University of Ciudad Juárez, stated, "Remittances in cities like Ciudad Juárez have doubled to nearly $90 million per trimester so far in 2024."
Oscar Hagelsieb, former assistant special agent in charge at the United States Homeland Security Investigations, told USA Today, "Corruption in Juárez, or in any other Mexican border city, must be in collusion with authorities."
Velasco added, "We know of federal law enforcement that traffic migrants. ... From inside shelters, they, along with officials from the National Institute of Migration, send information on people and then, outside, these people are abducted by criminal groups."
According to Velasco, some police officers kidnap migrants and hold them in safe houses until they can pay their smuggling dues to the cartel.
One smuggler told USA Today that law enforcement authorities also navigate the illegal aliens to the tunnels' entrances. He also claimed that for nearly $600 per person, officers provide cover for smugglers while they move the illegal immigrants into El Paso.
Art Del Cueto, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council, told NewsNation that the cartels' smuggling humans through the drainage system is "not something that's new."
"They use different types of social media. They have intel within the United States. They obviously have intel along the border," Del Cueto stated. "They charge different groups and families depending on the safest route or the easier one."
He explained that the smugglers are "willing to sacrifice" groups of illegal aliens who have paid less to create a diversion for those who have paid them more to get into the U.S.
"They'll get a group. They're separate them and say, 'Look, if you come across just turn yourself in. They're not going to send you back. Ask for asylum. You're going to get a free pass.' That allows these cartels to be able to pass other individuals through other areas," Del Cueto told NewsNation.
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US sanctions Mexican cartel leaders for drug trafficking, but Biden still won’t shut down the border
The United States Department of the Treasury announced on Thursday that it levied sanctions against eight leaders of a Mexican cartel, according to a department press release.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told Fox News anchor Neil Cavuto that the individuals were affiliated with the La Nueva Familia Michoacana cartel, which has been involved in drug trafficking and human smuggling operations across the southern border. According to the department, the group has trafficked fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine into the U.S.
'Isn’t the better solution ... to just shut down the border – entirely?'
“La Nueva Familia Michoacana is one of the most powerful and violent cartels in Mexico and has become a priority focus of the Mexican government in recent years,” the press release from the Treasury Department read.
In addition to the sanctions, the department issued an advisory “to highlight critical new information to help U.S. banks and other financial institutions guard against activity associated with the illicit fentanyl supply chain.”
“The advisory includes new trends and red flags that can be indicators of activity associated with the procurement of precursor chemicals and manufacturing equipment used for the synthesis of illicit fentanyl and other synthetic opioids,” the press release added.
Yellen released a statement explaining that the opioid crisis, fueled by the cartel, has “devastated communities and claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans.”
“President Biden and I are committed to using every tool we have to target illicit fentanyl and its precursor chemicals so we can disrupt these deadly supply chains,” Yellen stated. “Treasury has unique capabilities and expertise to target the financial flows of these cartels who are poisoning our communities, and going after them is a top priority for me and the Department.”
During her Thursday interview with Cavuto, the Fox News anchor pressed Yellen on the Biden administration’s open border crisis.
“Isn’t the better solution, and maybe it addresses what you’re doing here, secretary, to just shut down the border – entirely?” Cavuto asked. “Just lock it down, that’s what Donald Trump wants to do. What do you say?”
Yellen avoided directly answering the question and replied, “Well, um, you know, my concern today is with, um, fentanyl trafficking, drug trafficking, and I’d say ...”
Cavuto interrupted Yellen and asked whether shutting down the southern border would solve her concerns about drug trafficking.
“Well, look, the most, the most impactful tool we have is, um, to put in place sophisticated drug detection equipment, and that’s what President Biden has done is, um, not to shut down the border entirely,” Yellen responded.
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Cartel leaves 8 bodies along migrant smuggling route with chilling warning to rival gang: ‘Chihuahua has an owner’
The bodies of eight unidentified males were recently discovered near El Paso along a notorious and heavily trafficked illegal migrant smuggling route, the El Paso Times reported.
The victims were left in a field alongside the Pan-American Highway, which connects Chihuahua City to Juárez. Authorities discovered the gruesome scene around 8:30 a.m. on Sunday, according to the media outlet.
Police reported that the eight victims showed signs of torture, including multiple stab and gunshot wounds. Some of the victims also showed signs of asphyxia. According to authorities, no bullet casings were found at the scene.
A Juárez municipal news statement explained that the cartel members who perpetrated the murders nailed a chilling message to one of the bodies with a knife that read, “Chihuahua tiene dueño,” which translates to “Chihuahua has an owner.” The note aimed to serve as a warning to a rival human smuggling gang battling for control of the trafficking route.
Victor Avila, a retired agent for Homeland Security Investigations, told the New York Post that the area where the bodies were discovered is “one of the most coveted trafficking corridors from Mexico that exist.”
“Just a few years ago, the cartels never dealt with humans, not human trafficking or human smuggling. You had human trafficking organizations and human smuggling organizations that’s all they did, and the cartels did the drugs and other things,” Avila stated. “But that’s what has completely changed. The cartels saw the amount of potential money to be made with the human [smuggling], and they’ve now taken over.”
“These human trafficking organizations and human smuggling organizations now have been incorporated and answer to the cartels, and that’s where a lot of the struggle is because, yes, the cartels do want that money to be paid to them,” he continued.
Authorities found two more victims inside a vehicle located up the road. Police believe the separate discoveries are connected, but it is unclear whether the two victims were killed by a rival gang or by their own cartel.
State Public Safety Director Gilberto Loya told Border Report, “We found a burned vehicle [18 miles] to the north that could be related to this event. They used it to move the bodies.”
“We have a precedent of homicides committed in that area directly related to human trafficking,” he added.
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