Mexican cartel assassins operating in U.S., sheriff testifies to Congress
Congress heard shocking testimony about an assassination network that is associated with Mexican cartels, and operates in the U.S.
Mike Boudreaux is the sheriff for Tulare County, California. He said that his agency has recently taken down the Sinaloa Cartel operations in his county. Part of this was the arrest of an admitted cartel hitman who had claimed to have killed more than 25 people in the state.
The sheriff said that “he was responsible for certain parts of California and many other assassins were assigned by cartels throughout California to be responsible for these areas.”
He claimed that during his investigation of 50 cartel associates he learned that it is easier to smuggle people, guns and drugs across the border than ever before.
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The House Judiciary Committee was shocked by the revelations and wanted to know if the problem was widespread.
Sheriff Boudreaux stated that “much of what I have spoken of regarding California, violence and human trafficking is mirrored in many other states.”
He said that cartels are attempting to control migrants in small farming communities in Mexico in a similar way as they do territory.
He said, “It is already rooted.”
He testified as part of an hearing that included women who had lost children in incidents which they blamed on border chaos, which has erupted since President Biden took office.
Two illegal immigrants are accused of strangling a 12-year old girl, Jocelyn Nungaray. Rachel Morin was also killed on a Maryland jogging path.
The mothers of the victims blamed the Biden-Harris Administration for the deaths.
Patty Morin said that her daughter Rachel Morin would be still here if the immigration policies that were in place a few year ago had been implemented.
Tammy Nobles said that her daughter Kayla Hamilton could have been saved if the government had followed the procedures to identify gang members on the border. They missed the signs and now a man who was associated with MS-13 and came across the border unaccompanied as a child has been convicted for killing her daughter.
“She would still be alive today, if only they had made that phone call to El Salvador in order to verify his criminal record and tattoos from 2020,” said Ms. Nobles.
Democrats in the committee expressed sympathy for the mothers, but argued that the timing of the hearing was a political stunt ahead of the election. The hearing took place hours before the televised presidential debate between former president Donald Trump and Vice President Kamalah Harris, who is the Democratic nominee.
Rep. Veronica Escobar (Democrat from Texas) said that the blame for immigration and border problems should not be placed on the Biden and Harris administration.
She said, “We have colleagues that exploit people’s suffering for political reasons.”
April Aguirre was angry. She is a victim advocate and has been helping Alexis Nungary to help her mother, Jocelyn. The 12-year-old girl who was strangled in the summer.
She said, “It is insulting to say this to these families.” When her daughter was killed and I was guiding her through the criminal justice system to find justice, not one Democrat called me. Only Republicans.”
Ms. Nobles has also denied the charge of exploitation.
“I’m not forced to be here.” “I am not being forced to be here.” “I want to see changes made,” she said.
Rep. Jerrold NADLER, of New York and the top Democrat in the committee, was stung by this response. He tried a new tactic. He claimed that the U.S. gun law serves as an attraction for illegal immigrants, and fuels organized crime.
Rep. Glenn Ivey of Maryland, a Democrat, stated that illegal immigration crime has been a problem for many years. He claimed to have handled a brutal MS-13 murder as a prosecutor 20 years ago.
Rep. Dan Bishop (North Carolina Republican) countered by saying that high-profile crimes are increasing.
He said: “We have an hearing today where I believe I counted at least five deaths, and I’m sure I got at least four violent sexual assaults. A couple of these [were] kids.”
Sheriff Boudreaux estimates that 50 percent of crimes in which he arrests criminals from his county are committed by illegal immigrants.
He said that his investigators were able to catch up with the assassin of the cartel after he had left a receipt from a gas station at the scene. The investigators were also able to identify the assassin by obtaining surveillance footage from the gas station.
Sheriff Boudreaux noted that other border-related crimes have spread into his county, in the Central Valley of California. These include human trafficking and Chinese money laundering. He also mentioned thefts of farm machinery.
