Mexican cartels targeting Border Patrol agents with kamikaze drones, explosives amid Trump crackdown: report

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Mexican drug cartels are ordering their members to target U.S. Border Patrol agents with kamikaze drones and other explosives amid a crackdown at the southern border by the Trump administration. 

An internal memo titled “Officer Safety Alert” cited social media posts and other sources for the warning to federal agents, the New York Post reported. Agents were reminded to be “cognizant of their surroundings” and should be wearing their ballistic armor and utilizing their long firearms.

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Rival drug cartels exchange gunfire in Mexico. (Fox News) (Fox News)

“On February 1, 2025, the El Paso Sector Intelligence and Operations Center (EPT-IOC) received information advising that Mexican cartel leaders have authorized the deployment of drones equipped with explosives to be used against US Border Patrol agents and US military personnel currently working along the border with Mexico,” the memo, obtained by the newspaper, states. 

“It is recommended that all US Border Patrol agents and DoD personnel working along the border report any sighting of drones to their respective leadership staff and the EPT-IOC,” it said. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to the U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 

News Nation, which first reported the memo, reported TikTok posts and other social media sites used by Mexican drug cartels have also advised illegal immigrants to spit and urinate on ICE agents and defecate in their vehicles. 

Other posts have urged assassins to target border personnel. 

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U.S. Border Patrol after agents received gunfire from cartel members in Mexico while patrolling in Fronton, Texas last week. (Texas Department of Public Safety)

Last week, Border Patrol agents received gunfire from cartel members in Mexico while patrolling in Fronton, Texas, the Texas Department of Public Safety said. The cartel members fled Mexico because of a military presence and sought refuge on an island between Mexico and the U.S., DPS said. 

The warning comes as the Trump administration has launched deportation raids targeting illegal immigrants with criminal records and enacted tougher measures to secure the southern border. 

Cartel leaders have realized a proactive U.S. presence on the border could cut into their drug and human smuggling profits, the memo showed, according to the Post. 

Last week, U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, suggested the idea of the U.S. green-lighting private parties to target drug cartels for profit.

“Congress could issue letters of marque and reprisal authorizing private security firms or specially trained civilians to intercept cartel operations, particularly those involving drug shipments or human trafficking across borders,” Lee wrote on X. “Focus on disrupting supply lines, capturing high-value targets, or seizing assets like boats, vehicles, cash, gold, or equipment used in criminal activities.”

A U.S. Border Patrol agent stands on a cliff looking for migrants that crossed the border wall between the U.S. and Mexico near Sasabe, Arizona. Agents are reportedly being targeted by Mexican drug cartels amid a crackdown by the Trump administration to secure the southern border.  (Salwan Georges/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

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Lee suggested it would lower costs to American taxpayers, since privateers would be paid a portion of what they capture and bring back to the U.S.

Louis Casiano is a reporter for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to louis.casiano@fox.com.