DHS released record number of illegal migrants with tracking devices, phones

U.S. Border Patrol agents in the Otay Mountain Wilderness in the San Diego Sector. (Customs and Border Protection photo)

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By Jennie Taer
Daily Caller News Foundation

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has released a record number of illegal migrants with tracking devices and phones, according to new agency data.

As of Sept. 24, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had 316,700 illegal migrants enrolled in what is known as “Alternatives to Detention,” which uses a facial recognition application, GPS monitoring and telephonic reporting, according to Syracuse University’s Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), which obtains data through Freedom of Information Act requests.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported in June that most participants were unenrolled before their immigration proceedings concluded, finding that about a quarter of those taken out of the program that were placed on other forms of monitoring fled. The program’s technology is costing taxpayers $361,218.08 per day, according to ICE.

In fiscal year 2021, there were 136,026 illegal migrants enrolled in the program. And, in fiscal year 2020, there were 91,793 illegal migrants enrolled in the program at the end of the year.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) encountered a record number of over 2 million migrants at the southern border between October 2021 and August 2022. ICE’s latest data show that there’s been 25,134 illegal migrants in detention in fiscal year 2022.

Are illegal migrants being released with tracking devices?

The Biden administration placed a 100-day pause on deportations on the president’s first day in office and limited arrests to risks to border security, national security and public safety.

Alongside the administration’s sweeping policy changes, there’s been lower numbers of illegal migrants removed from the country.

ICE deported 59,011 noncitizens in fiscal year 2021, compared to 185,884 noncitizens deported in fiscal year 2020.

DHS didn’t respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

This story originally was published by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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