WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced the U.S. Border Patrol’s twelfth consecutive month of zero releases at the border, with southwest border apprehensions in April totaling 8,943 — a 94% drop from the monthly average under the Biden administration.
“Twelve straight months of ZERO releases at the border. Under President Donald Trump’s leadership, we are delivering the most secure border in American history,” said DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin. “The days of catch and release are over. We are enforcing the nation’s laws and sending illegal aliens back to their home countries.”
CBP Commissioner Rodney S. Scott drew a sharp contrast with the prior administration. “What a difference America! The U.S. Border Patrol released zero illegal aliens into our country again this month, unlike April 2024 when more than 68,000 were released under President Biden,” Scott said. “Every minute of every day President Trump’s border security policies are making every American safer.”
The numbers reflect a sustained collapse in illegal crossings not seen in more than three decades. Daily apprehensions are down 95% from the previous administration, with 15 consecutive months of fewer than 9,000 southwest border apprehensions. April’s daily average of 298 apprehensions was 94% lower than under Biden and 96% below the peak of the Biden administration in December 2023, when Border Patrol recorded 336 apprehensions per hour. Total fiscal-year-to-date encounters of 215,876 are 13% lower than the single month of April 2024 alone, and total southwest border apprehensions this fiscal year through April were 37% lower than just one month on average from fiscal years 1992 through 2024.
Drug interdictions surged alongside the enforcement crackdown. Nationwide seizures of cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl and marijuana combined increased 60% by weight compared with April 2024. CBP seized 463 pounds of fentanyl in April, with heroin seizures up 73% and methamphetamine seizures up 63% from March. For the fiscal year through April, CBP has seized 61% more drugs than during the same period of fiscal year 2024 and 53% more than the four-year average for the same period — figures with direct implications for Florida, a major destination point for narcotics trafficking through the Caribbean and southern corridors.
On the trade front, CBP processed $312 billion in imports in April and identified $21.6 billion in duties for collection. The agency also stopped 263 shipments valued at more than $810 million for potential forced labor violations and seized 2,983,850 counterfeit goods valued at over $1.5 billion. Agriculture specialists issued 7,181 emergency action notifications for restricted and prohibited plant and animal products and conducted 105,437 positive passenger inspections, issuing 690 civil penalties for failure to declare prohibited agriculture items.
Full monthly reporting data is available on CBP’s Stats and Summaries webpage, where the agency publishes updated enforcement and drug seizure statistics.