A suspected illegal alien with ties to a “well-known Mexican cartel” was arrested in Culpeper, Virginia, last Friday, prompting authorities to warn Americans that President Joe Biden’s southern border crisis is endangering citizens across the country.
“Virginia citizens should realize the extent that Mexican cartels have continued to increase their activity nationwide. Our detectives have purchased kilos of drugs as well as firearms in our region for many months,” Culpeper Sheriff Scott Jenkins said via Facebook.
“I often say every county is a border county and our southern border has been much more wide open since the end of January this year,” he added.
Jenkins’ comments came after “Detective J. Vazquez conducted a two-month investigation, as a member of the Blue Ridge Narcotics Task Force, into the illegal sale of firearms by Dulier Jimenez Barrera, 41, of 517 1st St. in Culpeper, near Yowell Meadow Park,” the Culpeper-Star Exponent reported.
“During the investigation, several firearms, high-capacity magazines, and ammunition were purchased from Barrera,” the paper also reported. “Task force members also seized $11,700 from the suspect’s home.”
According to the Facebook post from the Culpeper County Sheriff’s office, the operation involved local, state, and federal agencies:
Because of credible information linking Jimenez Barrera to a well-known Mexican criminal cartel, his arrest was conducted in coordination with multiple agencies.
In addition to Culpeper Sheriff’s Deputies, other members of the arrest operation were officers from the Virginia State Police, ICE’s Homeland Securities Investigations, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and SWAT teams from two agencies.
K-9 trackers, air support, a team of SWAT medics, and the CCSO rescue vehicle were also used during the arrest operation on Friday. In total, more than 35 deputies, officers, and agents participated in the arrest operation.
The Daily Wire has previously reported that deportations under Joe Biden have decreased 90% while illegal immigration has risen to levels not seen in decades.
“Immigration enforcement, as measured by the number of aliens removed from the country, has collapsed to the lowest level since the mid-1990s, according to [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] deportation records the Center has obtained. Under policies imposed by the Biden administration, removals dropped by 80 percent since last year’s low point during the pandemic lockdown, and by 90 percent since 2019, the last normal year for ICE operations,” Jessica Vaughn, director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, said in a statement.
The Daily Wire also reported that in November, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol encountered 173,620 illegal aliens along the southern border and that “of those, 25% involved individuals who had at least one prior encounter in the previous 12 months.”
In a statement given to The Daily Wire, a spokesman for ICE confirmed that “Dulier Jimenez-Barrera is believed to be a citizen and national of Guatemala, however, he has not previously been encountered by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and is not currently in ICE custody.”
“ICE issued an immigration detainer, based on probable cause that he violated U.S. law, and will seek to take custody of him after his release by local authorities,” the spokesman added.