WESLACO, Texas — Gov. Greg Abbott visited the South Texas border on Thursday to provide an update on “Operation Lone Star,” an effort to ramp up law enforcement due to an influx of people and children crossing into the U.S. from Mexico.
Abbott held a news conference in Weslaco in the Rio Grande Valley.
Texas Department of Public Safety Director Colonel Steve McCraw, Adjutant General of Texas Tracy Norris, members of the National Border Patrol Council and local law enforcement were also present at the news conference.
The governor launched “Operation Lone Star” in March to “fill the gaps” caused by immigration policy changes at the federal level, he said.
Under the operation, the state integrated DPS with the Texas National Guard to boost law enforcement at the border to help stop cartels, drug activity and smugglers from entering the U.S.
The operation was later expanded to crack down on human trafficking related to border crossings. That includes law enforcement conducting interviews with unaccompanied minors who crossed the border to identify victims of human trafficking.
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