Homeland Security Task Forces Target Transnational Organized Crime on U.S. Soil

FBI, Homeland Security Investigations co-leading new initiative to crush violent crime The FBI and Homeland Security Investigations—the investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security—have implemented a new task force model aimed at rooting out violent crime committed by foreign gangs, cartels, and other transnational criminal organizations impacting the United States. These new teams, known as Homeland Security Task Forces, bring together FBI and HSI personnel—as well as task force officers from local, state, and federal partner agencies—to investigate transnational organized crime activity such as drug trafficking and human trafficking that occurs across all 50 states, the nation’s capital, and Puerto Rico. "Transnational organized crime is a complex and constantly-evolving threat—and it demands an equally sophisticated and agile response," said FBI Director Kash Patel. "Homeland Security Task Forces are at the forefront of the U.S. government's fight to keep the tentacles of international gang, cartel, and transnational criminal organization activity from reaching our shores and victimizing innocent Americans. The FBI is proud to be leading this charge alongside Homeland Security Investigations and our state, local, and federal interagency partners in support of President Trump's executive order and of Attorney General Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Noem's collective vision for these specialized squads. Together, we'll continue to disrupt and dismantle these foreign terrorist organizations, bring their members and collaborators to justice, and restore law and order in our communities. Let's get after it.” The Q&A below includes insight from subject matter expert FBI Section Chief Mark Remily, the head of the Bureau’s Transnational Organized Crime Program. He’s also been leading the FBI's implementation of these new task forces. Q&A "Homeland Security Task Forces are at the forefront of the U.S. government's fight to keep the tentacles of international gang, cartel, and transnational criminal organization activity from reaching our shores and victimizing innocent Americans." FBI Director Kash Patel Q: Why were these task forces created? A: The Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security formed Homeland Security Task Forces in response to Executive Order 14159. President Donald Trump signed this executive order in January 2025, mandating the Justice Department and DHS to take the steps needed to form HSTFs in all 50 states. DOJ and DHS then directed the FBI and HSI to brainstorm the HSTF model accordingly. According to the executive order, these task forces are intended “to end the presence of criminal cartels, foreign gangs, and transnational criminal organizations throughout the United States, dismantle cross-border human smuggling and trafficking networks, end the scourge of human smuggling and trafficking, with a particular focus on such offenses involving children, and ensure the use of all available law enforcement tools to faithfully execute the immigration laws of the United States.” This executive order also directed the creation of a National Coordination Center (or NCC) to provide national-level intelligence, operational, and logistical support to the field-level task forces. Q: What do these task forces investigate? A: HSTFs investigate the activity of foreign gangs, cartels, and other transnational criminal organizations committed on U.S. soil and impacting the U.S. This includes, but is not limited to, those groups that the U.S. government recently designated as foreign terrorist organizations. Specific violations can include: Drug trafficking Money laundering Human trafficking Alien smuggling Homicide Extortion Kidnapping Weapons trafficking They also investigate other transnational criminal organization-related violations where a federal investigative interest may exist. Q: Will these task forces work immigration investigations? A: Immigration investigations aren't a focus for HSTFs. However, investigators may use immigration as a tool during investigations. “In the course of an investigation, we will analyze and look at it strategically in terms of: There are people here committing illegal acts and violent acts that don't have status,” Remily explained. “We will look at whether it's more appropriate for the use of government resources to remove them from the country, or if it makes more of a strategic impact to pursue investigations and prosecution of those individuals for other benefits that we can use to further enhance the investigation.” Q: How will the FBI and HSI assess the success of Homeland Security Task Forces? A: Our agencies will consider a number of factors when assessing the success of these task forces, including feedback from communities and state and local partners. We’ll also monitor whether task force investigations result in an increased number of arrests, indictments, and/or extraditions to the United States, since many transnational organized crime actors “are driving illegal activity” from beyond our borders, Remily explained. Q: Who leads Homeland Security Task Forces? A: The FBI and HSI co-lead the Homeland Security Task Forces. Each HSTF is “co-located and co-mingled with the federal, state, and local partners,” Remily said. Q: How is the HSTF model structured? A: The HSTF model consists of three layers, all of which are co-led by the FBI and HSI, with support from partner agencies: The first layer consists of the Homeland Security Task Forces themselves. These interagency task forces are located in all 50 states. The second layer consists of 30 regional hubs, known as Central Operations and Regional Enforcement (CORE) offices, as well as 29 satellite CORE offices. The top layer consists of the National Coordination Center (NCC), which provides national-level intelligence, operational, and logistical support to ground-level HSTFs. Personnel from over 15 federal agencies—including U.S. Customs and Border Protection; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the U.S. Secret Service; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the United States Marshals Service; Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation; the National Counterterrorism Center; the Department of War; and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service—also staff this center. “The government has never had a one centralized location to really combat and coordinate the transnational criminal threats that we target,” Remily said. “While all the federal agencies, the FBI included, do phenomenal investigations, we have our silos of excellence.” “And so, we're working through the National Coordination Center to bring all those interagency partners together in more coordinated approach to combating this threat, which requires intelligence sharing with our Intelligence Community partners, intelligence sharing with our state and local partners, and coordinating investigations, providing logistical and funding support where needed, and helping to deconflict investigations as they progress.” Q: Where will HSTFs get their investigative leads? A: The FBI- and HSI-led National Coordination Center (NCC) and the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) generate leads for HSTFs. The NCTC is particularly helpful in this effort since it analyzes intelligence and conducts network analysis of threats that largely exist beyond U.S. borders, Remily said. From there, the NCC and NCTC send leads to CORE offices for triage and action. “And then, investigations will be conducted as they normally have—organically through different sources to different information that's reported to state, local, and federal law enforcement. So, it's going to be a mixture of how investigations are generated and how investigations are prioritized,” Remily said. Regardless of which agency leads a given case, they can collaborate with other HSTF partner agencies during the investigation. “We will leverage their different skill sets, as well as the Bureau's, which focuses on the enterprise theory of investigation—looking at the entire organization and disrupting it regardless, not just focusing on drug trafficking, but looking at the money laundering aspect, the illicit finance,” Remily said. “Whatever criminal activity the organization’s involved in, we will look at it holistically and target whatever's appropriate.” Q: How do Homeland Security Task Forces compare to Violent Gang Safe Streets Task Forces (SSTFs) and Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTFs)? A: HSTFs mainly investigate foreign gangs, cartels, and transnational criminal organizations—especially those who the U.S. government has designated as foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs). JTTFs will continue to focus on investigating international terrorism and domestic terrorism, including homegrown violent extremists and lone actors whose actions are driven by ideology. And SSTFs will continue to focus on domestic gang investigations.