Venezuela Empties Prisons, Sends Criminals to US Border: House Republicans

Groups of asylum seeking illegal immigrants wait outside the Migrant Resource Center to receive food from the San Antonio Catholic Charities in San Antonio, Texas, on Sept. 19, 2022. Jordan Vonderhaar/Getty Images

Venezuela is deliberately releasing prisoners, among them violent criminals, and having them travel to the U.S. southern border, a development that prompted 14 House Republicans to write to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas), who is leading the Republican effort to have Mayorkas answer questions, said in the Sept. 22 letter that the decision by the Maduro regime has put the United States “in grave danger.”

“We write you with serious concern about a recent U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) intelligence report received by Border Patrol that instructs agents to look for violent criminals from Venezuela among the migrant caravans heading towards the U.S.-Mexico border,” the letter says, citing a recent report from Breitbart.

The outlet reported on Sept. 18 that it had reviewed the DHS intelligence report from an unnamed source within U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The report warned that released prisoners—including those convicted of murder, rape, and extortion—had been seen within migrant caravans traveling from Tapachula, Mexico, to the southern border, as recently as July.

The report also said the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service, Venezuela’s intelligence agency, may have played a role in deliberately releasing prisoners.

Hours after Breitbart published the report, Nehls took to Twitter to announce that he had obtained confirmation from the DHS.

“DHS confirms that Venezuela empties prisons and sends violent criminals to our southern border,” Nehls wrote. “President Trump warned us about this years ago.”

Former President Donald Trump issued such a warning several times in 2021. He did it again last week while speaking to radio show host Hugh Hewitt, when he said America had become a “dumping ground” as other nations were “emptying their prisons into the United States.”

Illegal immigrants from Venezuela, who boarded a bus in Texas, wait to be transported to a local church by volunteers after being dropped off outside the residence of Vice President Kamala Harris, at the Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 15, 2022. Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

Nehls later commented on the Breitbart report during an interview with Fox News contributor Sara Carter on Sept. 25.

“This bombshell report confirms what we’ve known for years,” Nehls said. “Our adversaries despise what America stands for and take pride in emptying their prisons filled with the most violent and sick individuals to walk the earth and send them to our southern border, where they know they’ll have no trouble getting in.

“Our overworked Border Patrol agents can only do so much when President [Joe] Biden gives everyone a no-strings-attached invitation into this country.”

Illegal Immigration

The letter comes as the United States is seeing an influx of illegal immigrants along the U.S.–Mexico border. According to CBP data, the number of illegal aliens arriving at the southern border in fiscal year 2022 surpassed 2 million in August, with unprecedented numbers coming from Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.

The letter points out that there have been more than 130,000 encounters with Venezuelan nationals between October 2021 and July 2022.

“As a result of the Biden Administration’s disastrous border policies, it is unknown how many of the violent Venezuelan prisoners have been released into the interior of the U.S., as identifying Venezuelans with criminal records is nearly impossible unless the individual admits their records to U.S. authorities,” the letter says. “This will undoubtedly put our country in grave danger.”

The 14 Republicans want Mayorkas to answer more than 10 questions about topics including the precautions DHS is taking to prevent these Venezuelan criminals from entering the United States.

“Have any of the Venezuelan nationals encountered at the southern border this year been suspected to be released prisoners?” the questions read. “Does DHS have a projected headcount of how many released Venezuelan prisoners are expected to enter the U.S.?

“Do you have reason to believe that the release of the convicts could be a purposeful geopolitical move specifically intended to impact U.S. national security?”

Nehls wrote on Twitter, “We need transparency and accountability from this administration.”