Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs on Tuesday signed an executive order she said will direct three state departments to create a joint task force to expand border security in the four border counties including Yuma.
Gov. Hobbs' order directs the Arizona departments of emergency and military affairs, public safety and homeland security to create the task force to be called Operation Desert Guardian.
The task force will look to partner with local law enforcement, sheriffs including Yuma County Sheriff Leon Wilmot and the federal government to disrupt transnational criminal organizations in the counties of Yuma, Pima, Santa Cruz and Cochise.
In a released statement, Hobbs said "I’m proud to launch Operation Desert Guardian to combat the cartels, stop drug smuggling and human trafficking and secure Arizona’s border."
The task force's objectives will include "identifying and mitigating security vulnerabilities along (Arizona's) 370-mile southern border and combating border-related crimes perpetrated by TCOs by dismantling their supply chains and operating networks."
Gov. Hobbs said Operation Desert Guardian will be funded by leveraging a portion of the $28 million balance in the State’s Border Security Fund.
The announcement comes at a time when Yuma Sector Border Patrol Chief Justin De La Torre told KAWC the border is relatively quiet with a few dozen migrant arrests daily.
Gov. Hobbs will be in Yuma County on Thursday as the Arizona Western Entrepreneurial College will break ground on a new manufacturing accelerator facility in Wellton.
Hobbs will then head to the Yuma Civic Center for a State of the State address.
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Stay tuned to KAWC for the latest news from Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs.
