Commentary: The Undercounted Statistics of Illegal Immigrants

In June, Victor Martinez-Hernandez was charged with the murder of Rachel Morin, a mother of five in Maryland. Police in Oklahoma tracked the accused repeat offender down with a sample of his DNA recovered from a Los Angeles home invasion in which a nine-year-old girl and her mother were assaulted. Police say he came to the U.S. illegally to escape prosecution for at least one other murder in his native El Salvador in December 2022. 

“That should never have been allowed to happen,” said Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler, referring to the numerous missed red flags the case presented. His office apprehended Hernandez in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

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Analysis: Sweeping Measure Shows the Real Scale of Border Insecurity Under Biden and Harris

CBP Officer chasing illegal border crossers

For more than half a century, the number of immigrants apprehended by the U.S. Border Patrol at the Southwest border has served as a rough proxy for illegal entries. However, this measure has become much less informative in recent years because it doesn’t account for other aspects of border insecurity that have exploded during the Biden/Harris administration. These include:

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Border ‘Gotaways’ Increase by More than 340 Percent Under Biden

CBP Officer chasing illegal border crossers

The number of known “gotaways” – or illegal migrants who evaded Border Patrol – exploded under the Biden administration by more than 340% from where it was at the highest point of the Trump administration, according to data published Wednesday.

In fiscal year 2023, more than 670,000 gotaways entered the United States, per Customs and Border Protection Data that Fox News obtained via a Freedom of Information Act request.

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Over 256,000 Illegal Border Crossers in February, Highest for the Month in History

Illegal border crossers apprehended

The number of illegal border crossers has increased significantly since Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas implemented a range of policies he said were designed to reduce “irregular migration” and create a “legal pathway” for foreign nationals to come to the U.S.

February of this year broke a record of 256,094 total illegal border crossings nationwide, the highest for the month in U.S. history.

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Analysts: Policymakers Must Confront Weaponized Migration to Address Border Crisis

Illegal migrants at a border fence

Unless Congress and policymakers understand how weaponized migration is being used against the U.S., they won’t be able to solve the problem, foreign policy analysts warn.

More than 11 million foreign nationals, including gotaways, illegally entering the U.S. from all over the world is not an accident, military and foreign policy experts have warned. It’s called migrant warfare, The Center Square first reported. The European Commission, United Nations, NATO, and foreign policy institutes have identified hybrid warfare being used in Europe, including migrant warfare, to shape national and international policies.

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More than 775,000 Illegal Border Crossers in Arizona Alone in Fiscal 2023

More than 775,000 people illegally crossed the border into Arizona in fiscal 2023, according to official U.S. Customs and Border Protection data and preliminary gotaway data.

This includes 576,912 apprehensions officially reported by CBP and at least 198,110 gotaways reported by Border Patrol agents alone, according to the preliminary data The Center Square obtained from a Border Patrol agent.

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More than 255,000 Apprehended at Southern Border in September

At least 255,212 foreign nationals were apprehended or reported evading capture after illegally entering the southwest border in September, according to preliminary Border Patrol data obtained by The Center Square.

This includes at least 222,009 apprehensions and 33,203 gotaways. “Gotaways” is the official U.S. Customs and Border Protection term that refers to the number of people known and reported to illegally enter the U.S. between ports of entry who intentionally try to evade capture and don’t return to Mexico.

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Texas DPS: Illegal Alien Apprehensions Reach Rate of 9,000 Per Day

The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) recently claimed that the ongoing mass migration crisis has led to a daily rate of at least 9,000 apprehensions along the southern border.

Breitbart reports that DPS spokesman Lt. Chris Olivarez confirmed the claims, saying that the previous two days have seen over 9,000 such apprehensions of illegal aliens. These numbers surpass the previous highest daily rate in the month of December, which saw approximately 7,200 arrests per day.

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Nearly 270,000 Apprehensions, Gotaways at Southern Border in March

There were nearly 270,000 apprehensions and gotaways reported of foreign nationals who illegally entered the U.S. at the southern border last month, according to official data released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and data The Center Square obtained from a Border Patrol agent.

CBP reported that encounters of illegal foreign nationals processed at ports of entry in all nine southwest Border Patrol sectors in March totaled 191,900, up nearly 23% from 156,138 in February.

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Southern Florida Continues to See Record Apprehensions, Gotaways of Illegal Immigrants

In January, Border Patrol agents apprehended 1,402 foreign nationals illegally entering Florida, according to preliminary data obtained by The Center Square from a Border Patrol agent on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. 

They also reported 58 gotaways, those who were known and reported to have illegally entered and got evaded capture by law enforcement. Combined, these totaled 1,460.

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Nearly 216,000 Apprehended, Gotaways Reported of Illegal Entries at Southern Border in January

At least 156,274 people illegally entered the U.S. in January, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data published on Friday, down 40% from 251,978 in December 2022, it says. The data excludes gotaway numbers referring to those who are known and reported to illegally enter between ports of entry, evade capture by law enforcement, and don’t return to Mexico or Canada.

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Border Patrol Agents Report More than 300,000 Apprehensions, Gotaways in December Alone

At least 225,797 people were apprehended entering the U.S. illegally nationwide in December, according to official U.S. Customs and Border Protection data released late Friday.

Combining official apprehension data with preliminary Border Patrol reported gotaway data obtained by The Center Square – a record 87,631 in gotaways – December numbers total at least 313,428, another record.

December’s total was greater than November’s record-breaking total of at least 306,069.

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Another Record: Nearly 314,000 Apprehensions, Gotaways at Southern Border in December

December was another record month for Border Patrol agents tasked with apprehending foreign nationals illegally entering the U.S. through the southwest border.

Agents apprehended at least 226,050 people and reported at least 87,631 who evaded capture by law enforcement last month. Combined, they total at least 313,681 – an increase from November’s record breaking number of 306,069.

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Nearly 816,000 Apprehended, Gotaways Reported in Arizona in Fiscal 2022

At least 815,786 people were apprehended or evaded law enforcement after illegally entering Arizona in fiscal 2022, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data obtained by The Center Square from a Border Patrol agent.

This is out of a record 3.3 million illegal entries reported by Border Patrol for all nine southwest border sectors in the fiscal year.

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Record Number of Apprehensions, Gotaways in Fiscal 2022 Surpass 3.3 Million

A record number of illegal foreign nationals were apprehended or recorded evading capture by Border Patrol agents in fiscal year 2022, surpassing 3 million, according to data obtained by The Center Square.

In October, U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported 2.7 million encounters and apprehensions of foreign nationals illegally entering the U.S., which included data from Border Patrol and Office of Field Operations and excluded known and reported gotaways.

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Analysis: The Border Is Less Secure Than Ever, and the Implications Are Deadly

During a recent hearing of the House Homeland Security Committee, Congressman Dan Bishop (R–NC) asked Homeland Security Director Alejandro Mayorkas, “Do you continue to maintain that the border is secure?” Mayorkas replied, “Yes, and we are working day in and day out to enhance its security.”

Contradicting that claim, objective measures show that the border is less secure than ever, and the situation is putting many thousands of lives at risk.

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Biden DHS Hands Out Cellphones to over 255,000 Illegal Aliens

Over the course of the last year, the Biden Administration’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has given out free cell phones to at least 255,000 illegal aliens who either crossed the border or were captured and released into the United States.

Breitbart reports that the data was published by the DHS, as part of the department’s broader Alternatives to Detention (ATD) program, which seeks other methods of handling illegals besides simply apprehending and deporting them. The DHS claims that the purpose of the cell phone scheme was to be able to track their locations using the phones.

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Economist Borjas: Immigration Redistributes ‘Wealth from the Native Poor to the Native Rich’

In July alone, U.S. Customs and Border Protection made nearly 200,000 arrests at the southern border. President Biden’s push for looser border policies has welcomed an influx of migrants since the beginning of his presidency and, according to the deputy opinion editor at Newsweek, research shows an open border hurts low-income Americans the most.

According to a 2021 study, immigration accounts for a third of the decline in the Black employment rate over the last 40 years, Unherd reports. Newsweek’s deputy opinion editor backs her claim with an argument from economist George Borjas stating, “immigration primarily boosts the incomes of the immigrants themselves, while redistributing wealth from the native poor to the native rich.”

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Commentary: Biden Is Nowhere to Be Found After Unleashing Total Chaos at the Southern Border

I was at the border just this week. If President Joe Biden cared, he’d be there too. His Department of Homeland Security (DHS) quietly released its latest batch of catastrophic border numbers.

More than 239,000 illegal immigrants were apprehended in May — the highest monthly total in DHS history. Taking a step back, this means a shocking 3.5 million illegal immigrants have now crossed into the U.S. since Biden took office. This is not normal, nor is it accidental. It is a cataclysmic destruction of our sovereign borders at the expense of the American people.

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Total Southern Border Encounters, ‘Gotaways’ Greater Than Population of 23 U.S. States

President Joe Biden and his administration insist the southwest U.S. border is closed and federal immigration laws are being enforced.

But since Biden took office, more than 3 million people have been encountered/apprehended entering the U.S. illegally from over 150 countries, according to Customs and Border Patrol data. And that number doesn’t include so-called “gotaways,” the term used for those crossing the border illegally who evade capture.

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