Border Patrol arrests of suspected gang members increased in fiscal year 2022. But thanks to a recent Cato Institute Freedom of Information Act request, we know that the numbers are still far below the numbers a decade ago. The overall trend in arrests of gang suspects is going down (Figure 1). In 2010, Border Patrol reported that it arrested 1,327 suspected gang members. The total through 11 months of fiscal year 2022 was 697.

As a percentage of total arrests, suspected gang members were the second lowest on record in fiscal year 2022 at a miniscule 0.03 percent of arrests. Although the trend is down, it is still worth expressing skepticism about these “gang affiliation” claims from Border Patrol since the government often claims that people are affiliated with gangs or smuggling operations without evidence or with evidence to the contrary. There is no reason to believe that the willingness of law enforcement to fabricate gang affiliation claims has lessened in recent years.