Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is offering thousands of dollars to people who report stash houses used to hide illicit drugs and illegal migrants.
The state will pay $5,000 to people who report information leading to the stash houses used by transnational cartels who seek to evade law enforcement detection, according to a statement from Abbott’s office. (RELATED: Texas Gov Sends Bus Of Illegal Migrants To Another Democrat-Run City)
“As President Biden’s dangerous open border policies continue to allow cartels and other criminal organizations to operate freely in our communities, it is more important than ever that Texans step up and report suspicious activity. DPS and local law enforcement partners are working around the clock to prevent transnational crimes from being committed in communities around the state,” Abbott said in a statement.
Youth migrants traveling without adults are processed by a border patrol agent after being smuggled across the Rio Grande river into Roma, Texas, U.S., August 26, 2022. REUTERS/Adrees Latif
Abbott has committed other state resources to border security efforts as part of “Operation Lone Star,” which has involved deploying Texas authorities, including Department of Public Safety (DPS) troopers, to the border. The effort has resulted in the discovery of 170 stash houses with over 1,900 illegal migrants, according to Abbott’s office.
The first tip from the effort resulted in DPS seizing over 19 kilograms of methamphetamine, 20 pounds of marijuana, cocaine, heroin, LSD, over $6,000 and four weapons, according to Abbott’s office.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is on pace to encounter 2,000,000 migrants at the southern border in fiscal year 2022, according to agency statistics. In August, Border Patrol agents in Mission, Texas, found 11 illegal migrants from the Dominican Republic and Mexico and discovered another stash house in Edinburg, Texas, with 28 illegal migrants.
“These stash houses contain people or drugs that may have otherwise made their way across Texas and the nation because of the dangerous gaps left by the Biden Administration’s refusal to secure the border. With the help of Texans across the state, we can bring criminals to justice, destroy their illegal enterprises, and keep our communities safe,” Abbott said.
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