In New York City, police are now targeting the violent Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua. According to the NYPD, the gang is now “actively recruiting gang members in migrant shelters where guns and drugs have been smuggled inside via food cartons.”

NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell says the border crisis is driving the brutal surge in gang violence, and Tren de Aragua has established a new base of operations in New York City.

“They’re a big threat to the city,” Chell says. “We’re not new to gangs or crews in the city. So this is our newest crew. And what’s alarming about this crew is that their conspiracy to commit crimes touches a lot of areas, from retail theft to extortion to robberies to human trafficking, and the worst of the worst, they’ve shot two of our cops.”

Illegal immigration isn’t just a border crisis now; it’s an Everytown crisis. And it will require Everytown solutions. Fighting illegal immigration must first take place at the border, but that fight must also take place throughout the nation. Fortunately, there are strategies to help—along with tools for peace officers to use to combat illegal alien crime throughout the U.S.

First, we have to recognize the scope of the problem. A letter to Congressman Tony Gonzalez, R-Texas, from the Department of Homeland Security shows there are hundreds of thousands of criminal illegal immigrants who have been allowed into the U.S.—and are being allowed to stay.

“As of July 21, 2024, there were 662,566 noncitizens with criminal histories on ICE’s national docket, which includes those detained by ICE, and on the agency’s non-detained docket,” the letter reads. “Of those, 435,719 are convicted criminals, and 226,847 have pending criminal charges.”

Texas, especially, has borne the brunt of the border crisis.

“According to [Department of Homeland Security] status indicators, over 441,000 criminal noncitizens have been booked into local Texas jails between June 1, 2011, and August 31, 2024, of which over 312,000 were classified as illegal noncitizens by DHS,” the Texas Department of Public reported last month. “Between June 1, 2011, and August 31, 2024, these 312,000 illegal noncitizens were charged with more than 542,000 criminal offenses.”

Here’s a sample of the charges:

  • 1,006 homicide charges
  • 69,515 assault charges
  • 9,736 burglary charges
  • 63,438 drug charges
  • 1,277 kidnapping charges
  • 27,292 theft charges
  • 3,093 robbery charges
  • 6,850 sexual assault charges
  • 7,882 sexual offense charges
  • 6,696 weapon charges
  • 42,259 obstructing police charges

“Foreign nationals who enter the country illegally and avoid detection by DHS but are later arrested by local or state law enforcement for a state offense will not have a DHS response in regard to their lawful status and do not appear in these counts,” DPS adds.

Fortunately, Texas and other states have options. Even without state legislation giving broader power to peace officers, there is already legal authority and directives in place for all peace officers through the United States Department of State as part of consular notification requirements. And state legislatures can—and should—pass new laws empowering their law enforcement officers even more.

Texas, for example, should enact legislation requiring peace officers to determine the status of anyone they stop, detain, or arrest, if reasonable suspicion exists that that person is unlawfully present in the state.

Texas lawmakers should also enact legislation allowing peace officers to arrest aliens not carrying immigration documents. This is backed by federal law, which requires that (most) foreign nationals always carry immigration documents with them while in the United States.

Lawmakers must broaden the power of peace officers to combat crime and address the quality-of-life matters stemming from unchecked illegal immigration. An intensive, cohesive approach is necessary, and that approach must be backed by our lawmakers and applied nationwide.