Mexican cartels might be targeting U.S. Border Patrol agents stationed in Texas, according to reports.
The Border Patrol in the Rio Grande Valley region issued a warning to agents this week after receiving information about possible cartel violence against U.S. Border Patrol agents in South Texas.
“On February 16, 2022, RGV OPCEN received information regarding possible cartel violence towards U.S. law enforcement personnel. Information stated that cartel groups were discussing killing U.S. law enforcement personnel along the border near Fronton, Texas, between Miguel Aleman and Los Guerra, Tamaulipas, Mexico,” read in the warning.
An official from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection confirmed the legitimacy of the document and the Rio Grande Valley Sector has already urged its agents to take precautionary measures against a potential attack from the cartels.
“Agents are reminded to be cognizant of their surroundings while performing Border Patrol operations. It is recommended that all agents wear their ballistic armor, utilize long arms, and if possible, work in groups when responding to illicit activity along the immediate border,” said in the document.
The CBP official also said that Fronton, a small town in Texas where most Border Patrol agents are stationed, has become a high-traffic area for drug smuggling.
The Mexican Cartel smuggles the drugs from the city of Miguel Aleman in Mexico, across the Rio Grande, to Fronton.
Since September, agents in the Rio Grande Valley have been shot at by the cartels on four different occasions.
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety in October, members of a cartel were spotted dressed in military-resembling uniforms touting U.S. soldiers on the southern border while carrying AK-47 rifles.
The department also noted that cartel members would return to Mexico and retrieve their weapons after smuggling people across the Rio Grande.
“What’s been happening actually this past week is we see a group of individuals that are coming across — they’re smuggling people — but what they’re doing is they come across the river into the U.S. and smuggle people, they go back into Mexico, and they get their weapons,” said Texas DPS spokesman Lt. Christopher Olivarez.
