One sheriff gets the illegal alien “gotaways” in his Arizona county, while the other predominantly gets the “give-ups.”
Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels said that during the month of March, his office apprehended more than 7,000 illegal immigrants who were trying to avoid capture, also known as “gotaways.”
Two years ago, that number was “a manageable” 400 per month, Dannels said.
“In my section of the southeast corner in the state of Arizona … we see 100 percent aggravated individuals that are camouflaged, they’re coming to the country for all ill intent—they’re taking advantage of current times,” Dannels told members of Congress during an April 6 House hearing.
Between 900 and 1,000 smugglers drive into Cochise County to pick up illegal aliens near the border and drive them to Phoenix for about $1,000 per head, according to Dannels.
“We need to understand that smuggling comes with criminal cartels. These transnational organizations, they have no respect for Americans, no respect for communities,” he said. “My office right now is investigating several acts here last month, where an agent—they tried to cut his throat. Had another one [where] they tried to kill the agent.”
As the Biden administration prepares to end the Title 42 public health order on May 23, border sheriffs are expecting the worst.
“We have great concern,” Dannels said. “It’s going to have a huge impact. We’re already outpaced.”
Title 42 is a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention order that was invoked in March 2020 under then-President Donald Trump to minimize the spread of COVID-19 by ensuring that only essential travel occurred at U.S. borders.
It directed that illegal immigrants could be quickly expelled back into Mexico as a pandemic precaution, rather than be processed under Title 8 immigration law, which is a much more protracted process inside the United States.
“Currently, we’re spending $17,000 a week out of a rural county sheriff’s office to address border security,” Dannels said.
Between July 1, 2021, and February, the sheriff’s office has spent $1.1 million in booking border-related criminals into the local jail.
“What we’re not talking about when it comes to our southern border is the rule of law. We’re also not talking about border security. We have immigration, and we have border security. And sadly, border security has been set aside,” Dannels said.
