Federal prosecutors announced charges Monday against 13 people they said were involved with cartel-backed operations that stole cars in the U.S. and shipped them south of the border, where they became part of “daily business” for the smuggling outfits.
Authorities said they spotted the trend of stolen vehicles ending up with the cartels in the spring, and began to make arrests. They have recovered 29 vehicles, worth more than $1.1 million, though the total amount of traffic likely far exceeds that.
Sometimes the vehicles would be rented and driven straight across the border. Other times they were stolen from dealerships or off the streets in western Texas or eastern New Mexico.
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“To anyone considering transporting stolen vehicles into Mexico: do not do it,” said Justin R. Simmons, the U.S. attorney in western Texas. “These organizations that solicit your assistance are using your desire for a quick buck to expand their criminal operations.”
Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent Ryan McRae called the pipeline of vehicles “an alarming pattern” and said they were being used in the “day-to-day operations” of the cartels.
In one case, a border officer spotted two Dodge Ram pickup trucks headed in line to go south through a border crossing point. Neither had license plates.
The officer flagged them for screening, and it soon became clear they’d been stolen after being sold at auction, according to court documents.
In another case, HSI investigators were alerted to a Jeep Wrangler that did make it south. When they looked at video footage at the border, they identified and flagged a driver.
He was stopped earlier this month by border officers when he returned from a cruise ship journey. According to court documents, he admitted to renting vehicles that were then reported stolen and driven south.
The 2025 Jeep Wrangler was valued at more than $57,000.
In yet another case, El Paso police detectives responded to a report of a stolen Toyota RAV4 being found.
The chain eventually led to a man who admitted he was a coordinator for a cartel, arranging vehicles to head south and to distribute drugs smuggled north.
He said he was paid $600 a day by the Doble A cartel, or Artistas Asesinos, which works with the Sinaloa Cartel.
Another court case also mentioned La Empresa, a cartel which has been linked to other major smuggling operations in Juarez, just over the border from El Paso.
“These are not isolated property crimes,” Agent McRae said.
The Trump administration has declared some of Mexico’s largest cartels to be terrorist organizations, though the charges brought so far have generally been standard offenses such as transportation of stolen property.
The cartels have seen a major source of income shrink as President Trump has largely sealed off the southern border from illegal crossings.
Cartels have been broadening their income streams to include everything from stealing and selling oil to defrauding timeshare owners.
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