Mexican Officials Say Border Task Force Has Seized Over 62 Tons of Drugs Since February

Mexican authorities have seized more than 62 tons of drugs and arrested over 6,000 people since the creation of the Operación Frontera Norte task force in February, Security Minister Omar García Harfuch told reporters on Aug. 27.

Since taking office in October 2024, one of President Claudia Sheinbaum's most pressing challenges has been strengthening security along the U.S.-Mexico border, as the Trump administration continues to pressure Mexico to curb the illegal flow of drugs and migrants into the United States.

More than six months after the task force was launched, Mexican officials said the actions taken by the federal government have produced significant results since the operation began on Feb. 5.

According to García Harfuch, a total of 6,680 individuals have been arrested through efforts carried out by federal agents since the launch of Operación Frontera Norte. Authorities have also seized 5,189 firearms and 62,616 kilograms of drugs, including nearly 342 kilograms of fentanyl.

In addition to the seizures, García Harfuch said federal operations targeting criminal groups have caused substantial economic damage to organized crime. In July, President Sheinbaum said her administration's security strategy had inflicted more than $2.3 billion in losses on criminal networks through seizures, arrests and the destruction of clandestine laboratories.

One of the states with the largest federal presence has been Sinaloa, which has turned increasingly violent due to ongoing turf wars between Los Chapitos and La Mayiza, the two Sinaloa Cartel factions battling for control of the region. Since September 2024, when the conflict erupted, the state has recorded 1,904 homicides and 1,890 kidnappings, according to data from Noroeste.

Earlier this month, García Harfuch said that joint operations with state authorities between October and August produced positive results in the region. During that period, authorities seized more than 3,000 firearms and 64 tons of drugs, and dismantled 105 clandestine laboratories.

The security cabinet's announcement comes ahead of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio's upcoming visit to Mexico, where he is scheduled to meet with Sheinbaum to sign a new security agreement.

Earlier this month, Sheinbaum said the agreement is based on four key principles: respect for sovereignty, respect for territorial integrity, mutual trust, and collaboration and cooperation.

"There are areas, for example, where we will coordinate working groups to investigate how fentanyl reaches the United States—where the precursors come from, where that fentanyl is produced. That's very important, and it will be done jointly," she said.