Border Patrol agents in California have arrested a group of immigrants suspected of engaging in a sophisticated theft scheme that included theft of department store gift cards, possession of fraudulent identification documents, and credit card skimming operations. Last week, two separate raids occurred in the El Centro Border Patrol sector, the first involving five Chinese nationals and the second involving two Romanians.
Early last week, Border Patrol agents near Indio, California, encountered five Chinese nationals at an inland Border Patrol entry checkpoint. Investigators discovered the immigrants were in possession of numerous stolen gift cards and 23 fake Pennsylvania driver’s licenses. All five migrants were arrested, Border Patrol said. Three of the five Chinese nationals were identified as asylum seekers who were released by DHS after entering the United States illegally.
In the second case, just a few days ago, border guards near El Centro stopped a vehicle carrying two Romanians. According to the Border Patrol, one of the Romanians had a valid J-1 visa and was admitted to the United States on an application by a U.S. company for training or internship activities. It shows that A second Romanian passenger in the car was identified as an asylum seeker who had been released by DHS after entering the United States illegally.
The Romanians were found to be in possession of a large number of stolen retail gift cards, similar to previous incidents involving Chinese nationals. The two also had electronic credit card skimming devices in their possession.
Theft of retail gift cards by immigrants is not a new phenomenon. In December, Sacramento County sheriff’s deputies arrested Ningning Sun, a Chinese immigrant, after officers observed him putting gift cards back on store shelves while removing other merchandise. Sun was arrested after allegedly stealing from a Target store in Sacramento after leaving the store with retail gift cards. Deputies said Sun was found to have 5,000 Apple and Target gift cards in his possession at the time of his arrest.
Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper told reporters at the time of the arrest that the gift card fraud involved the theft and reprogramming of the cards to transfer funds that were added to a series of Chinese bank accounts rather than the cards themselves. He said that he was suffering.
The fear of Romanian nationals crossing the southwest border pales in comparison to the recent surge of Chinese nationals. Border guards arrested 2,431 Romanians in 2023 and encountered nearly 600 Romanians between October and December of this year.
The number of Chinese nationals apprehended at the southwest border continues to rise, according to Customs and Border Protection. More than 24,000 Chinese immigrants crossed the southwest border in 2023, most of whom were released to seek asylum in the United States. From October to December, more than 15,000 Chinese nationals were seen illegally entering the United States.
More than 80 percent of immigrants from the People’s Republic of China are single adult men and women, according to a source within CBP who was not authorized to speak to the media.
The intelligence briefing yielded little information about Chinese migrants and their purposes for entering the country, the source said. Sources said the language barrier was proving to be a challenge. The volume of migrants arriving from more than 280 countries during fiscal year 2023 has negatively impacted the time Border Patrol agents can spend reporting individual migrants.
Breitbart Texas recently spoke with Dr. Kenneth Allard, a retired Army colonel and former dean of students at the National War College, about the increasing number of Chinese nationals entering the United States. As the author of numerous works including warhead: Cable News and the Fog of War, Allard, a former intelligence officer and special assistant to the Army Chief of Staff, is also concerned about the lack of information about the sharp increase in arrests of immigrants from the People’s Republic of China.
Allard says it may be the case that most Chinese immigrants are actually dissidents fleeing harsh conditions in China. But as an expert on totalitarian regimes, he believes the current government lacks the will to properly investigate this phenomenon.
“Totalitarian governments like China exploit opportunities in a big way. They recognize weaknesses and are quick to exploit them. What we are seeing reflects deliberate policy choices by the regime. Allard told Breitbart Texas.
Randy Clark He is a 32-year veteran of the U.S. Border Patrol. Prior to his retirement, he served as Division Chief of Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol stations within the Del Rio, Texas area.
