A spike in smuggling stops in one affluent Sunshine State community, “just makes sense,” said one U.S. Army veteran as a demographic trend emerged out of a communist nation.
Central and South American gang members aren’t the only cause for concern as President Donald Trump’s White House and conservative state officials work to reverse the border crisis left behind by the Biden-Harris administration. As a number of high-profile busts attested this year, Coral Gables, Florida, is a hot spot for smuggling operations as a surge in single, military-aged men from China has been identified.
“Coral Gables is adjacent to international waterways,” explained Imperios Consulting CEO and retired Green Beret Eric Brown to Fox News Digital, “and with Cuba just 90 miles from the coastline of Florida, it just makes sense.”
“It’s also a lot easier to fly into a South American country and smuggle across than it is through Canada. And human smugglers are using an established pathway through South America and Central America to bring migrants through safely,” he went on.
According to data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the 723 interactions with Chinese nationals by Florida Border Protection officers in 2024, compared to 406 in 2020, is a 78% increase. Brown explained that, rather than families as had once been the case, roughly two-thirds of those entering the U.S. from China are single men of military age.
As recently as January, two significant smuggling efforts had been subverted by alert locals with the first getting thwarted by a security guard for a local homeowners association who had notified police of suspicious activity. Law enforcement followed through on the tip and discovered a U-Haul van filled with 21 “predominantly Chinese nationals,” as well as individuals from Brazil, Cuba, and Ecuador, explained Coral Gables Police Chief Edward James Hudak Jr.
“We do believe these individuals were brought here by the water,” he said during a press conference at the time. “They were probably dropped off, we’re assuming somewhere around the southern end of Coral Gables and approached on foot to the van where they were loaded into.”
‘See something, say something’ leads to discovery of U-Haul full of Chinese, other migrants https://t.co/udl5GQUxXa via @BIZPACReview
— BPR based (@DumpstrFireNews) January 18, 2025
Before the end of the month, a similar situation resulted in the arrest of two alleged smugglers, one from Cuba and the other from Puerto Rico, when a bust located 26 Chinese nationals loaded into vans in Coral Cables.
Hudak said, “For the second time in just over a week, a very alert resident saw suspicious activity which was later determined to be illegal entry into our country.”
Following the interception, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement commented on the coordinated effort with the Coral Gables Police and said they stand “with @GovRonDeSantis and @realDonald Trump to crack down on illegal immigration NOW!”
Today, FDLE and Coral Gables Police Department intercepted more than two dozen Chinese nationals in Coral Gables. The @coralgablespd, #YourFDLE and our federal law enforcement partners responded after a citizen tip alerted investigators to vehicles suspected of transporting the… pic.twitter.com/mIRCXcap45
— FDLE (@fdlepio) January 28, 2025
“There needs to be better discussion between the state and national levels about sharing resources, increasing air-based technology at the border,” said Brown. “For instance, the use of surveillance drones and updating technology could be a great place to start.”
Where the influence of the Chinese Communist Party was concerned, continued efforts by legislators to curb encroachments into the United States have included the introduction of legislation in February dubbed the Protect America’s Innovation and Economic Security from CCP Act, specifically geared toward restoring the efforts of the first Trump administration’s “China Initiative” that would, among other things, tamp down on spying.
“The CCP has stolen our businesses, infiltrated our institutions, and undermined our economy for far too long,” bill sponsor Texas Rep. Lance Gooden (R) told the Daily Caller News Foundation in February. “We must act now to defend our economy and national security from China’s aggression. Congress must send a clear message: America will not tolerate the CCP’s economic sabotage.”
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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