SAN DIEGO — Immigration advocates say a new report showing the vast majority of people caught smuggling drugs into the country are U.S. citizens starkly contrasts with public perception.
The study by the Center for Investigative Reporting shows three out of four people caught with drugs by the U.S. Border Patrol are U.S. citizens. Looked at another way, four out of five drug busts by the agency involve at least one American.
“Immigrants are the scapegoats,” said Andrea
Guerrero of Alliance San Diego, a group that focuses on border issues and immigration.
“The public perception is that drug runners are immigrants, but this report shows us very clearly that drug runners are American. American citizens,” she said.