Gov. Ron DeSantis joined Florida Highway Patrol officials to reemphasize his commitment to enforcing state immigration law at a press conference in Orlando on Friday. The governor has stepped up immigration enforcement under the Trump administration after signing a package of anti-illegal immigration measures into state law in February.
"FHP [Florida Highway Patrol] alone has apprehended just since we started doing the 287(g), they've apprehended almost 3,000 illegal aliens that were later taken for immigration processing by the Department of Homeland Security," DeSantis said. "Over 500 of them already had an existing criminal record; they're actually convicted of things. "Why are you in the country when you've already been convicted of something, when you never had a right to be here in the first place?"
DeSantis added that FHP has stopped illegal aliens with weapons, fentanyl, as well as large sums of cash. The governor also said troopers have uncovered illegal smuggling operations during enforcement.
Flanked by FHP troopers, DeSantis highlighted arrests by the patrol over the last month, including a Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang member with an extensive criminal history on existing existing warrant in Orange County, home to Orlando.
In addition, DeSantis said FHP arrested an illegal alien who is a member of the Salvadorian gang MS-13 in Wauchula County, as well as an illegal migrant with the 18th Street gang from Guatemala in Broward County who had two prior removals from the United States.
The governor went on to list countless other illegal migrant criminal stops by the FHP, including an illegal alien in Osceola County for striking and killing a pedestrian before fleeing the scene, an illegal alien in Palm Beach County wanted for murder in Guatemala, and an illegal alien in Hernando County for trafficking 30 pounds of marijuana.
To further combat the threat of illegal immigration, DeSantis announced the establishment of a new immigration unit with the FHP alongside the Bureau of Criminal Investigations and Intelligence to specialize in immigration enforcement.
"This team of mission-dedicated troopers will work in close contact with local, state, and federal law enforcement partners to identify, locate, and apprehend criminal aliens across the state," DeSantis said. "We're proud of the great work FHP is doing...there's no other state in the country that can match our efforts, in fact, there is no other state even in the ballpark."
