The administration continues to improve cross-border security in a variety of ways
By: Jon Dougherty
(TNS) And in other news not related to the demise of humanity from COVID-19, the Trump administration, in a joint operation with Mexican authorities, has managed to capture hundreds of cartel members responsible for running drugs and illegal immigrants into the country.
As reported by The Hill, the Justice Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) announced this week that more than 600 people have been arrested in connection with the massive enforcement operation aimed at cracking down on the cartels:
“Project Python,” a DEA-led initiative, targeted members of Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG). According to the DEA, over the last six months federal law enforcement officials have been monitoring the activities of the accused.
The operation resulted in more than 600 arrests nationwide, 350 indictments and “significant seizures of money and drugs,” according to the agencies.
“Project Python marks the most comprehensive action to date in the Department of Justice’s campaign to disrupt, dismantle, and ultimately destroy CJNG,” Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski said in a statement.
Benczkowski referenced an executive order signed by President Trump shortly after his 2017 inauguration condemning cartel operations on U.S. soil and directing federal law enforcement agencies to use the Threat Mitigation Working Group to target them — an entity set up by the Obama administration in 2011 but, apparently, little-used.
“When President Trump signed an Executive Order prioritizing the dismantlement of transnational criminal organizations, the Department of Justice answered the call and took direct aim at CJNG. We deemed CJNG one of the highest-priority transnational organized crime threats we face,” Benczkowski said. “And with Project Python, we are delivering results in the face of that threat for the American people.”
According to the Justice Department, CJNG is currently active in several major U.S. cities including Los Angeles, New York City, Chicago, Houston, and Atlanta.
In addition, The Hill reported, the DoJ and DEA also announced a superseding indictment Wednesday against Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, also known as “El Mencho,” the leader of CJNG, for continuing criminal activities.
And in February, “Oseguera Cervantes’s son was extradited from Mexico to the U.S. to be served drug trafficking charges. Two weeks ago, on Feb. 26, his daughter was arrested by federal officials for financial crimes,” The Hill noted.
This article originally appeared at The National Sentinel and was republished with permission.
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