DHS Arrests 25 Illegal Immigrants in Georgia Forest Crackdown, Including 14 Felons and 1 Cartel Member
Updated
Updated · Fox News · May 15
DHS Arrests 25 Illegal Immigrants in Georgia Forest Crackdown, Including 14 Felons and 1 Cartel Member
1 articles · Updated · Fox News · May 15
May 1-6 raids in Stephens County, Georgia, led by DHS and the U.S. Forest Service, netted 25 illegal immigrants, including 14 people with prior felony convictions and one confirmed cartel member.
Operation Southern Forest Trident targeted remote forest roads and service lands in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, where authorities said fugitives, drug traffickers and undocumented suspects were hiding.
A traffic stop near Highway 365 triggered one of the biggest manhunts of the operation after two suspects fled into the woods; officers later captured 31-year-old Minton Carreto, while a second suspect remains at large.
Traffic stops also produced multiple drug arrests involving methamphetamine, cocaine, marijuana and oxycodone, alongside 33 federal citations, 36 Georgia State Patrol citations and 58 warnings.
Sheriff Rusty Fulbright said isolated forest areas can become crime hot spots without regular patrols, framing the sweep as part of a broader push to intensify rural interdiction in northeast Georgia.
Beyond arrests from 'Southern Forest Trident', what is the long-term plan to secure these remote areas?
As new federal rules disrupt forestry work, will public safety missions on these lands face challenges?