Utah to aid Trump's deportation effort as violent Venezuelan gang spreads to state

Utah Governor Spencer Cox (R) pledged to assist President-elect Donald Trump with his plan to launch the largest deportation effort in the country's history.

Cox announced a five-point initiative last month to increase the state's coordination with federal immigration officials amid reports that the violent Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua has spread to parts of Utah.

'Federal immigration authorities have failed in their duty to the American people.'

Last week, Cox told KUED, "We're going to start with criminals, people who are breaking the law and causing harm to Americans. That's where we have to start. Let's get the worst element out. Let's focus there. That's something we haven't been able to do, and the backlog is ridiculous."

Cox stated that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is "broken" under the Biden administration.

"They can't even take 100 criminals, serious criminals, in this state and deport them. ICE has been broken in this state, for this leadership has been an embarrassment," he said. "The sheriffs in our state have lost faith in ICE leadership in our state under the Biden administration."

In June, Jon Ewing with Denver Human Services stated that the Colorado city was busing and flying illegal aliens to other states, including Utah.

Cox called the sanctuary city's actions "completely unacceptable" and slammed the Biden administration for its "failed catch-and-release policy."

A Salt Lake City-based homeless agency told KSL that most of the migrants arriving in the area were from Venezuela. The influx of illegal aliens prompted Utah to release a bulletin in English and Spanish explaining that the state's resources were "limited." "No shelter space is available. You will not be placed in a hotel," it read. "Housing is difficult to find and expensive."

Earlier this month, KSL reported that Tren de Aragua had increased its presence in parts of Utah. The gang has been tied to at least two alleged crimes since September, including a shooting in Salt Lake City.

According to the governor's office, the majority of crimes committed by illegal aliens within Utah's prison population are sex offenses and murder.

The Utah Department of Public Safety told KSL that TDA's "presence in Utah is not extensive" at this time.

Cox called the transnational criminal organization "a growing threat" in the state.

Utah County Sheriff Mike Smith stated, "It's hard to quantify what's here. We know [Tren de Aragua is] here, and we're trying to do the best we can, as it starts to surface, to handle it."

Last week, Carlos Moreno, a Venezuelan dissident running for Salt Lake County Council in District 2, told the New York Post that local law enforcement agencies are "not ready" to handle TDA. He warned that the gang members "are totally different than the criminals here in the United States."

Cox announced that Utah would lead a joint and "targeted effort" by the DPS and the state's Department of Corrections "to enhance coordination with federal, state, and local partners to identify, incarcerate, and deport more illegal immigrants who have committed crimes and pose a threat to public safety."

The governor outlined five priorities: finding additional "intercept points" to identify criminal illegal aliens, rolling out further training for local authorities on when to turn illegal aliens over to ICE, creating "long-term solutions" to combat fentanyl trafficking, coordinating with the state legislature to draft policy, and cooperating with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to identify illegal aliens.

"When it comes to immigration policy, the safety of Utah residents is my top priority," Cox stated. "Utah will continue to welcome refugees and immigrants who enter the country lawfully, and we will continue pushing for reforms to the asylum process and for more visas to support our workforce needs."

"We have zero tolerance, however, for those who demonstrate a threat to public safety while in the country illegally," he continued. "Federal immigration authorities have failed in their duty to the American people, and they've left states and localities to independently manage the fallout of those failures. We're grateful to have an administration coming in who will take these problems seriously."

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