Federal authorities announced Wednesday the first-of-its-kind task force in New York that, they say, will combat transnational criminal organizations in the Big Apple.
Officials said the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) in New York, led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the FBI, was created to combat what the agencies say is a rise within the United States, including drug trafficking, money laundering, weapons trafficking, human trafficking, alien smuggling, homicide, extortion, kidnapping, and more.
The task force was formed during a period when the NYPD has reported record-low shootings and murders in New York year-to-date. Though crime is down across New York City, federal officials — including U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton — insist crime “is still way above where it should be.”
“We hear what New Yorkers want: they want our parks, schools, housing developments, subways, and streets to be safe and feel safe,” Clayton said. “And that’s really what this is all about. It’s about delivering public safety for the most vulnerable people.”
The feds also revealed that local law enforcement, such as the NYPD, will also encompass and work with the task force. No NYPD reps, however, were present at Wednesday’s press conference.
“The historic collaboration of this Task Force strengthens the mission to protect our citizens by standing between our districts and the transnational criminal organizations, human smugglers, and cybercriminals who target us with drug trafficking, violence, and economic harm,” U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Joseph Nocella Jr. said.
President Donald Trump, who appointed both Clayton and Nocella Jr. to their respective posts, announced the creation of “Homeland Security Task Forces” as part of a purported national effort to combat dangerous criminals through the sharing of vital information between agencies.
During the briefing, officials showcased wanted posters of Julio Cesar Montero Pinzon and Carlos Andes Rivera Varela, who allegedly provided support to a terrorist organization, as examples of the types of individuals they are hunting.
“In the last year, we have collectively investigated and charged: members of Tren de Aragua and many other brutally violent gangs with murders, sex trafficking, and narcotics distribution; over a dozen narco-terrorists and members of state-sponsored drug cartels with narcotics distribution; foreign nationals with fentanyl distribution; and most recently, 18 defendants in a wide narcotics sweep aimed at cleaning up Washington Square Park,” Clayton added.
The task forces were formed amid an ongoing nationwide immigration crackdown by the Trump administration that has seen, in New York and other cities, masked federal agents apprehending individuals on the streets and even outside courtrooms at 26 Federal Plaza.
The New York HSTF will enforcement immigration laws if they come across an individual who allegedly broke them, federal officials said Wednesday — though they insisted that immigration enforcement is not the primary purpose of the task force.
“HSTFs are set up to, like we all spoke about, to target the transnational criminal organizations. And we’re looking at the criminal violations that they exist with now,” said HSI Special Agent-in-Charge Ricky Patel of the agency’s New York field office. “If there is immigration related violations that we come across while we’re doing these investigations, of course, it is a federal violation. It is a federal crime. We will take action when needed.”
“But these task forces are strictly stated and created to target the worst of the worst,” Patel added, echoing the exact words of Border Czar Tom Homan, who previously said that ICE’s immigration crackdown would only focus on violent criminals rather than arresting immigrants without criminal records.
