New Mexico Weekly Immigration and Border Crimes Report: Turning Away Potential Trespassers at Southern Border

ALBUQUERQUE – Today, the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico announced its immigration enforcement statistics. These cases are prosecuted in partnership with the El Paso Sector of the U.S. Border Patrol, along with Homeland Security Investigations El Paso, and assistance from other federal, state, and county agencies. 

In the four-week period ending October 2, 2026, the United States Attorney’s Office brought the following criminal charges in New Mexico:

• 288 individuals were charged with Illegal Reentry After Deportation (8 U.S.C. 1326)
• 23 individuals were charged with Alien Smuggling (8 U.S.C. 1324)
• 232 individuals were charged with Illegal Entry (8 U.S.C. 1325)
• 284 individuals were charged with Illegal Entry (8 U.S.C. 1325), violation of a military security regulation (50 U.S.C. 797) and Entering Military, Naval, or Coast Guard Property (18 U.S.C. 1382), arising from the newly established National Defense Area in New Mexico. 

Many of the defendants charged pursuant to 8 U.S.C. 1326 had prior criminal convictions for child molestation, drug possession, and theft, possession with intent to distribute narcotics, grand theft, and prior immigration offenses.

Marines assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border weld and reinforce flood gate locks in Arizona. This engineering mission provides unique military capabilities to harden vital access points in support of U.S. Customs and Border Protection along the southern border. (Courtesy JTF Southern Border via Facebook)

These cases are part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

On September 17, 2026, Sunland Park Fire responded to an injured male last night at Anapra Rd and Posey Rd. Border Patrol agents requested medical assistance with a male in his 30’s with lacerations to his head and body, found near the Border Wall. SPFD Squad 51 transported. (Time out: 9:28 pm)

These statistics represent prosecutions by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico only. The numbers do not include individuals apprehended by immigration enforcement officials and subjected solely to administrative process.

Under current leadership, public safety and a secure border are the top priorities for the District of New Mexico. Enhanced enforcement both at the border and in the interior of the district have yielded aliens engaged in unlawful activity or with serious criminal history, including human trafficking, sexual assault and violence against children. 

The District of New Mexico consists of 33 counties and shares 180 miles of international border with Mexico.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys from Albuquerque and Las Cruces work directly with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners to prosecute immigration-related and other federal offenses.

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Related Story

326th Engineer Battalion Soldiers Assist in Turning Away Potential Trespassers at Southern Border

Story by Spc. Anthony Opromolla
Originally Posted August 25, 2026

FORT BLISS, Texas – A stationary guard shift on the border is about staying focused when nothing is happening. For U.S. Army Pfc. Charley Stewart and Spc. Christopher Miller, two combat engineers with the 591st Sapper Company, 326th Engineer Battalion, 101st Airborne Division, (Air Assault), staying sharp paid off during their first week with Joint Task Force–Southern Border in support of Operation Ardent Vanguard.

On August 4, 2026, a few hours into their shift around 5:00 p.m., on guard duty watching over assets in their sector near Alamo Alto, Texas, Stewart spotted movement through his binoculars.

“I saw a man dressed in all black with sunglasses on top of the barrier,” said Stewart. “We drove over towards him, and he jumped down to the Mexico side of the wall.”

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The Soldiers followed established protocols and reported the unfolding events. After they relayed their coordinates to their command team and U.S. Border Patrol (USBP), they stood their ground, keeping an eye on the man they spotted. Initially, the two thought they just deterred one man trying to scale the wall. As time went on, they realized what was really happening.

“At first it was just the one guy,” Stewart said. “Then we could hear several sets of footsteps.”

This prompted the Soldiers to dismount on foot and investigate. They got closer to the barrier to see what they could find.

“I turned the truck off to see if we could listen,” said Miller. “Maybe there is more than one person.”

As they approached the barrier and made their presence known, it became clear to them that they were dealing with a large group of potential trespassers.

“We saw them cross back over the river towards Mexico,” said Miller. “Twenty to 30 of them were wearing black hats, black hoodies and black pants. They were organized, it was almost like they were in uniform.”

When USBP arrived, they were able to safely secure the area and ward off the suspected trespassers, but it was Miller and Stewart’s efforts that allowed this to happen.

“They started to migrate back over the hillside,” said Miller. “It was because they were deterred by our presence at the crossing point.”

Miller, from Portland, Oregon and Stewart, from Doylestown, Ohio, didn’t set out to make headlines. They were just doing their job and protecting the territorial integrity of the southern border.

“A lot of people don’t realize how often drug smugglers and human traffickers attempt to cross the border,” Stewart said. “It’s what motivates me to do my job. That incident made me proud that I was able to contribute to the security of our border.”

U.S. Northern Command is working side-by-side with the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection within narrowly defined authorities to provide unique military capabilities to protect the territorial integrity of the U.S. southern border.