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Illegal immigrants’ activity in drug trade uncertain
Loading ...Gov. Jan Brewer’s recent statements linking illegal immigration to drug smuggling and beheadings have again put the focus on the connection between Arizona’s porous border and criminal activity.
Exploring any link between illegal immigration and other crimes is difficult.
There is little in the way of reliable data that indicate what crimes immigrants may commit after crossing the border illegally. That uncertainty makes it easy for politicians and advocates to make bold statements that are nearly impossible to confirm or refute.
Brewer’s statement that “we all know that the majority of the people that are coming to Arizona and trespassing are now (becoming) drug mules” fits neatly into a category of claims that are hard to verify.
“I wouldn’t know how to begin to validate those statistics,” said Lt. Jeff Palmer of the Pima County Sheriff’s Department’s border-crimes unit, which focuses on violent crime associated with human and drug smuggling.
Longtime smuggling routes for people and narcotics have been taken over by drug cartels, Palmer said.
But “there’s no way of telling how many illegal aliens are smuggling drugs,” he said. “We do know there are a significant amount who don’t have the ability to pay for entry into the United States and one way they pay for entry is by carrying drugs.”
Continue Reading at The Arizona Republic.
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