According to Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, the state’s efforts to combat illegal immigration and Tren de Aragua (TdA) migrant gang activity have resulted in over 90% fewer unlawful crossings and nearly 50,000 criminal arrests.
According to Abbott’s office, the Texas-led “Operation Lonestar,” which began in March 2021 and has included over a dozen other Republican states, has resulted in 530,400 illegal immigrant arrests and over 49,900 criminal arrests, including more than 42,900 felony charges.
During this operation, Texas became the first state to erect its border wall, with building continuing at critical spots despite President Biden’s order to halt it in the early days of his administration.
“Our top priority is the safety and security of Texans, including against the growing threat of Tren de Aragua,” Abbott explained to X. “We will not allow this gang to operate or gain a foothold in Texas.”
The governor’s office also stated that during Operation Lonestar, Texas law enforcement confiscated over 620 million fatal doses of fentanyl, which they described as “enough to kill every man, woman, and child in the United States, Mexico, and Canada combined.”
The office stated that Abbott labeled TdA, which has been committing violent crimes across the country, as a foreign terrorist organization and formed a strike force to target, identify, and arrest members of the group.
Texas Department of Public Safety troopers apprehended four TdA members crossing the border on New Year’s Eve, one of whom was designated as a potential gang leader.
According to the statement, Texas has transported 119,400 migrants to Washington, D.C., New York City, Chicago, Philadelphia, Denver, and Los Angeles, all of which have migrant sanctuary policies.
According to Andrew Mahaleris, an Abbott spokesperson, Operation Lone Star cost Texas more than $11 billion, all of which was spent on border security efforts such as deploying thousands of Texas National Guard soldiers and DPS troopers, transporting migrants to sanctuary cities, installing strategic barriers, cracking down on violent gangs like TdA, and building a new border wall.
“Because of these efforts, Texas has decreased illegal crossings into the state by 87%,” Mahaleris told the crowd. “Texas has held the line against the Biden-Harris border crisis for the past four years, and Governor Abbott looks forward to continuing to work closely with President Trump and his incoming administration to protect our state and the nation.”
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