Criminal aliens are reportedly stealing truckloads of oil and materials from oilfields, and all on behalf of the cartels.
“Oil tanker trucks are pulling up to storage tanks and siphoning oil from them, then driving away,” the Washington Examiner exclusively reported Friday. “Other thieves are taking scrap metal and pipes on site, as well as stealing large quantities of water and dirt, to be sold on the black market.”
This has been confirmed by Rep. Tony Gonzales, whose district runs along the southern U.S. border in Texas.
“The bottom line is the border crisis is expanding, and it is morphing into other things, and part of that is you have folks that are Cuban nationals that are kind of settling out in West Texas and in some cases are part of this increase in oil theft,” he told the Examiner in an exclusive phone interview Friday.
Oil theft is on the rise in West Texas—I’m partnering with the FBI, DPS, and #TX23 sheriffs and law enforcement to improve public safety and protect our resources in the Permian Basin. ⬇️https://t.co/7uXEAW8oCk
— Rep. Tony Gonzales (@RepTonyGonzales) May 11, 2024
This is a big, big, big deal, according to Oil & Gas Workers Association president and founder Matt Coday — one with the potential to eliminate oil and gas jobs.
“Truckloads of oil are being stolen from small, independent oil producers,” he told the Examiner. “Oilfield instruments, trucks, equipment, and even work boots and clothes have been stolen. These crimes hurt every American and smaller, independent producers especially.”
Speaking during a press conference this Friday, Winkler County Sheriff Darin Mitchell said this oil theft has “increased dramatically” in recent months.
Winkler and Crane County District Attorney Amanda Navarette added during the press conference that, because oil is such a major industry in Texas, these thefts are now affecting ordinary people.
“It not only affects big business, but it affects our systems of our counties,” she said. “Most of us work in the oil industry or have some kind of ties, and this ultimately affects everybody in our communities.”
According to Gonzales, he first learned of this problem last year. Then when he set out to speak to local sheriffs about three months ago, he discovered that “every single one” had encountered this crime.
Since then, Gonzales has been trying to link everybody else up with each other.
“What I’m trying to do is connect all those local law enforcement agencies with this FBI Task Force that sees the overall picture,” he explained. “If you live there locally, you know it is a real problem, but it’s almost not making it up to the national stage because it’s in a silo, if you will. And I’m trying to break down the silos — local, state, and federal all on the same page.”
MONAHANS
This morning, I hosted a roundtable about the rise in oilfield theft in West Texas. I was joined by the FBI and local law enforcement from all over the region.
Together, we are working to improve task force operations that will stop criminals in their tracks. #TX23 pic.twitter.com/vcDWhyeZfz
— Rep. Tony Gonzales (@RepTonyGonzales) May 10, 2024
The task force he referenced is reportedly working on switching from an individual “whack-a-mole” strategy to one involving “sharing information between agencies to help the FBI and federal agencies take down larger factions of the criminal organizations,” according to the Examiner.
Meanwhile, Monahans, Texas chief of police Kristofer Quintana told the Examiner that these oil thefts are likely linked to the cartels.
“All of this other criminal activity, it all links together,” he said.
Last month FBI Director Christopher Wray testified before Congress that the agency had recruited oil field security personnel into the aforementioned task force.
Though according to Gonzalez, their thefts go past beyond just oil.
“They’re also in human smuggling, and they’re also in drugs, and they’re also in cars,” he explained. “These criminal organizations, they’re not like, ‘Oh, hey, we’re only in the oil stealing business.’ They’re in everything. They will steal anything that’s not bolted down and one of those things is oil because it’s lucrative.”
Energy security is national security. ⛽️
Proud to be joined by West Texas law enforcement in the fight against oil theft across the Permian Basin. Don’t mess with Texas! pic.twitter.com/XJ9APvbWji
— Rep. Tony Gonzales (@RepTonyGonzales) May 10, 2024
Coday, the Oil & Gas Workers Association president and founder, for his part believes the thefts can be blamed on President Joe Biden.
“We believe Joe Biden’s open borders policies are helping drug cartels take over America’s most prolific oil-producing region now,” he told the Examiner.
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Vivek@bizpacreview.com
V. Saxena is a staff writer for BizPac Review with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University.
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