Monroe County, Ohio Sheriff Charles R. Black Jr. has voiced strong criticism of U.S. border policies, asserting that lax regulations are leading to a significant increase in illegal immigration and drug-related problems in his community.
Black expressed frustration over what he perceives as inadequate border control measures that have resulted in an estimated 10.5-13 million illegal immigrants have come to the United States, most from across the country's southern border.
He emphasized that the current system is failing to protect the country and called for tougher measures to address illegal immigration.
“Every other country protects their borders,” he told Federal Newswire. “I think it's asinine that we are a country that if you go to jump on an airline to fly from, say, Columbus to Florida on vacation, you go through a mandatory check and so forth and then our open border is basically people flooding in with no checks, no balances.”
The process for boarding flights for illegal immigrants without identification has been eased by the Biden Administration.
Earlier this year former New York Lieutenant Governor Betsy McCaughey argued that allowing migrants to board domestic flights without photo IDs, a policy enabled by President Biden’s CBP One app, poses a significant security risk, that combined with an open southern border, endanger national security and undermine efforts to prevent another tragedy like 9/11.
Black also highlighted the connection between illegal immigration and drug trafficking, expressing concerns about how cartels exploit migrants. He believes that this exploitation leads to increased criminal activity and a rise in drug-related issues in his county.
Black also warns that many illegal immigrants smuggled through the southern border are linked to cartels, posing a significant threat to national security and local law enforcement.
He noted these individuals, often indebted to cartels, may engage in criminal activities to repay their smuggling costs.
“They might pay a percentage to get across the border to be trafficked across, but unfortunately they're in the pocket of that cartel,” he said. “So when they get dispersed across the country, they're going to be in there for some type of criminal element to pay back their actual cost of being shipped here.”
According to Black, the federal government’s response to the crisis is inadequate and he suspects that political motives may be influencing the handling of the issue.
“With this upcoming election and everything that's turning up on its head, I believe the border is going to be a big issue in that,” Black said. “And (politicians) are probably going to steer away from that like the bubonic plague and try to downplay it.”
Regarding potential solutions to the border problem, Black suggested a more aggressive approach, including deploying the military to assist with border enforcement.
“Send your military down there. I'm not saying Gestapo and start mowing people over, but if they want to come into the country they should do it like any other legal individual that decides to seek refuge in our great country,” he said.
Black also questioned the demographics of those crossing the border, highlighting a perceived lack of families among the migrants.
“There are a lot of what appear to be young males that are coming across the border,” he said. “Now, if I was fleeing for the safety of my family, you would assume that I would have a wife and children with me also. I don't see much of that.”
With a population of just over 13,000, Monroe County has experienced a decline in numbers over the past twenty years, similar to many rural areas. It ranks as the second least populated county in Ohio.
Situated on Ohio's eastern border, it lies directly across the Ohio River from West Virginia.
Despite Monroe County’s small size and its relative insulation from the border, the border has come to it in the form of drugs and their effect on public safety.
“It’s a very dynamic world when it comes to all these different events that are going on right now and I don't see an easy, quick fix to this,” he said. “It's going to be a hard, hard battle.”
He noted the impact of drug trafficking on rural areas like Monroe County, noting an uptick in both petty and serious crimes.
“Everything increases from your petty crimes all the way up to your larger felony activity,” he said. “Of course, the unemployment rate doesn't help out either.”
Black discussed the challenges faced by local law enforcement as a result of the increase in drug trafficking.
“We see a wide variety of narcotics, methamphetamines, fentanyl,” he said.
Fentanyl is the leading cause of death among Americans aged 18-45 and is responsible for nearly 70% of over 107,000 drug overdose deaths last year.
China is the main supplier of precursor chemicals used by Mexican cartels to produce fentanyl.
With the change in the way drugs are produced and distributed such as the China/Mexico connection, Black said the drug market has evolved.
He observed that the availability of narcotics has increased significantly, with cheaper options now readily available.
“It is a lot cheaper for them to basically buy it off the street now than to try to cook it and make their own,” Black said.
Black mentioned that drug dealers are using social media to distribute narcotics.
Reflecting on the evolution of drug trafficking, Black highlighted how technology has changed the landscape.
“I think back 30 plus years ago when I started, we did not have the amount of activity in the world that we have now,” he said. “With social media we deal with some cases where narcotics are being mailed just right through the United States Postal Service or through U.P.S.”
Earlier this year Black’s office uncovered illegal drugs in UPS packages shipped from Marietta.
Authorities traced the packages, which contained Psilocybin mushrooms and cash, back to a home in Lewisville, Ohio where they found 1.3 pounds of Psilocybin mushrooms, 10.7 pounds of marijuana, three firearms, and other items related to drug trafficking.
Two were arrested in the incident with one of the alleged accused of using various aliases to ship drugs to multiple states.
