Kristi Noem reveals cartels, gangs have put bounties on the heads of ICE agents

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem detailed this development on Fox & Friends Sunday, where she explained that DHS has “specific agents who have had bounties put out on their heads.”

“It’s been $2,000 to kidnap them, $10,000 to kill them. They’ve released their pictures; they’ve sent them between their networks. It’s an extremely dangerous situation and unprecedented,” Noem said.

The DHS secretary noted that threats are coming from “gangs, cartel members, and known terrorist organizations,” and are motivated by frustration that federal agencies have disrupted their operations. She noted that DHS has put protective detail on the specific agents who have been targeted to keep them safe from potential attacks.

“They are making sure that they know which officers are out there and being extremely effective, and they want to take them down, because they want to try to stop the operations that … are keeping them from making money off their criminal networks,” she added.

Cartels have publicly admitted their operations have been hindered by President Donald Trump’s border security policies. A senior member of the Sinaloa Cartel told CNN that Trump’s enforcement measures have made it far more difficult for the organization to smuggle people and drugs across the southern border. Additionally, last month, a man who has made millions as part of El Chapo's cartel said that the Trump administration's "aggressive approach is going to send a strong message" to drug traffickers.

CNN also reported that smugglers have raised prices to nearly $10,000 per person as stricter enforcement has made illegal crossings more difficult.