Federal officials in El Paso, Texas, recently confirmed statements by Mexican law enforcement officials who claim drug cartels are using drones to transport narcotics into the United States. Border Report.
On Thursday, Chihuahua state Public Security Secretary Gilberto Loya said Mexican drug cartels are increasingly using drones to transport narcotics to El Paso.
“We have 15 anti-drone devices.”
He said: [Big Red X] Around the memorial, they use drones to fly drug packages across and drop them on the other side.”
Located about 100 yards south of the border, the monument is also known as Plaza de Mexicanos.
Loya also noted that the Juarez drug cartel in Mexico is using drones to monitor law enforcement activities on both sides of the border and “as guides to escort migrants into the United States.” South Korea His comments were translated and reported.
Federal officials told Border Report there have been encounters with drug drones in the region, but officials did not provide details about the number of drones or the types of drugs being transported.
News media noted that the Juarez cartel is primarily known for trafficking methamphetamine.
Despite the confirmation from that official, Border Report noted that federal officials in El Paso could not confirm whether the drones were entering the U.S. or being used to direct illegal immigrants.
Loya reported that his team shot down multiple drones in the mountainous region of Chihuahua state, near the U.S.-Mexico border.
“We have 15 different types of counter-drone devices, some that force the drone to turn back, some that completely block the signal and send it to the ground, and some that track the drone back to its base,” he said.
Last month, a bulletin purportedly leaked by the US Border Patrol's Yuma Sector Intelligence Unit warned that Mexican drug cartels were using drones to “drop explosives” on rival gangs, The Blaze News reported.
Air Force Gen. Gregory Guyot told the Senate Armed Services Committee earlier this year that there were “more than 1,000” drone incursions along the border each month.
“We haven't seen any of this manifest as a threat to our national defense, but the potential is only increasing,” he told lawmakers.
Authorities have reported increased drone activity on the southern border, while law enforcement officials in Juarez have reportedly tried to thwart drug cartel attacks on surveillance cameras. Border Report.
Loya told reporters on Thursday that authorities had recently installed 11 cameras on the streets of Juarez to monitor cartel activity. Since then, cartel members have reportedly fired shots at the cameras and hit them with hammers. In another instance, they allegedly set fire to a utility pole to destroy equipment.
“Organized crime feels threatened by this system that is being implemented across the state,” Loya said.
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