Double wall against the cartel. How the two Nogales accelerated border security in 2024… and what’s still missing in 2025

The Nogales–Nogales corridor became in 2024 the most visible laboratory for local cooperation against cross-border crime. While the DEA has documented that the Sinaloa Cartel channels its shipments near Arizona’s crossings — with Nogales as a key point — municipal police forces, supported by state and federal agencies, have moved from reactive coordination to operations based on shared intelligence and joint targets.

Three gears sustain that cooperation. First, binational campaigns like Se Busca Información, which link arrest warrants from Sonora and the United States and channel the information directly to local forces. Second, funding for frontline work such as Operation Stonegarden: in 2024, Santa Cruz County — where Nogales, AZ operates — received $2.42 million, a 16% increase compared to 2022. These resources pay for overtime, patrols, and interoperable equipment for both municipal police and the sheriff’s office. Third, technical working groups with cross-border violence prevention protocols, which in 2025 continue to convene the Sonora Secretariat of Public Security, Arizona DPS, CBP, and US Marshals with municipal participation.

On the ground, 2024 left measurable progress. In April, CBP at the Nogales port seized more than 400 pounds of fentanyl and other drugs in a single weekend, a surgical blow that originated from intelligence and non-intrusive inspections. At the national scale, CBP reported 22,000 pounds of fentanyl seized during FY2024; the majority of this drug is intercepted at ports of entry, not in the desert. Federal data are blunt: over 90% of seizures happen at official crossings and, in Arizona alone, ports of entry accounted for nearly 12,000 pounds of fentanyl in FY2024 — more than double California’s total. This has reoriented municipal strategies toward what happens around Mariposa and DeConcini.

On the Mexican side, the reduction in homicides adds another sign that coordinated pressure works. In July 2024, local media reported that in Nogales, Sonora, murders dropped by 34% year-on-year, a decline linked to mixed patrols, targeted raids, and increased use of surveillance cameras. Although Sonora remains among the most violent states, these municipal-level data suggest that deterrence is effective where there is joint presence and technology.

Technology is the multiplier. CBP has deployed large-scale X-ray scanners that allow for vehicle checks without disrupting commerce; meanwhile, Sonora is modernizing its C5i network — over 2,500 cameras — and upgrading hundreds of devices in 2025. For municipal police, this translates into license plate reading, real-time alerts, and stronger digital evidence chains. The priority is not simply to “see more,” but to share better: standardize metadata, protect privacy, and consolidate binational fusion centers with shared dashboards for both Nogales.

The economic vector pushes in the same direction. Nogales concentrates Arizona’s highest pedestrian flow, and its commercial activity depends on competitive crossing times. That is why the planned modernization of the DeConcini Port of Entry, discussed with the community in December 2024, is so crucial. It promises more lanes, better inspection systems, and fewer bottlenecks without sacrificing security. When municipal police sit at the same table with customs and city governments, the costs of violence to commerce — partial closures, redundant inspections — decrease.

There were also surgical operations that reinforced trust. In November 2024, a binational inspection of the main drainage system detected and shut down a smuggling tunnel under construction; and in 2025, HSI Nogales investigations with Mexican support dismantled networks of human and drug traffickers. Each success stems from something that already happens daily: municipal police sharing patterns, license plates, and addresses with their counterparts across the line.

Academia helps avoid losing sight of the bigger picture. The Binational Migration Institute at the University of Arizona documents risk dynamics along the Arizona–Sonora corridor and provides evidence on how port decisions and migration routes affect local security; meanwhile, El Colegio de la Frontera Norte (Nogales Unit) and El Colegio de Sonoracontribute territorial analyses that cities can translate into preventive patrols and social prevention. This builds toward policy grounded in evidence, not just raids.

2025: What’s Still Missing. The challenge is not to invent more programs, but to deepen those that already work. First, institutionalize interoperability: radios, protocols, and databases with defined access levels for municipal, state, and federal actors, subject to external audits. Second, secure local funding: Stonegarden and state funds are cyclical; mayors must budget maintenance and continuous training to avoid relying solely on temporary “peaks” of resources. Third, supply-chain intelligence: while over 90% of fentanyl is seized at ports of entry, municipal focus should move to the urban rings around the ports (parking lots, parcel services, warehouses), supported by network analysis and cooperation with businesses. Finally, balance security and flow: modernizing ports — with more scanning and risk management — both deters crime and accelerates the commerce that sustains both cities.

Escrito por: Editorial

#Nogales

#SeguridadFronteriza

#CooperaciónBinacional

#Fentanilo

#TecnologíaCívica