Steve Cortes, founder of the League of American Workers, said that thousands of undocumented immigrants have been arrested in Virginia this year and called for tougher measures against crime and gang activity. The statement was made on X.
“Over 5,600 criminal illegals arrested in Virginia, just this year,” said Cortes. “MS-13 has been active and violent in Northern Virginia. Protect your streets and children, reject criminal-coddling Spanberger & psycho Jay Jones.”
Virginia authorities have intensified crackdowns on gang-related and immigration-linked crime, with multiple 2025 arrests tied to MS-13 networks in Northern Virginia. According to The Washington Post, federal agents detained a Salvadoran national accused of leading regional MS-13 operations, part of broader coordination between state and federal agencies under Governor Glenn Youngkin’s public safety agenda. The arrests underscore persistent gang activity despite years of enforcement efforts.
According to the Office of Governor Glenn Youngkin, more than 2,500 “criminal illegal immigrants” were arrested across Virginia by July 2025 under operations including Bold Blue Line and the Virginia Homeland Security Task Force. These initiatives focus on cooperation between state police and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to address violent crime, drug trafficking, and gang activity involving non-citizens.
The U.S. Department of Justice reported in March 2025 that a Maryland federal grand jury indicted several alleged MS-13 members for murder and racketeering, reflecting continuing gang prosecutions across the mid-Atlantic. Similar actions by the Department of Justice in New York and Virginia demonstrate a multi-state pattern of enforcement against transnational criminal networks.
Cortes is also a senior political advisor to CatholicVote. He is a former senior advisor to President Trump and JD Vance, as well as a commentator for Fox News and CNN. Cortes regularly releases documentaries and columns at cortesinvestigates.com.
The League of American Workers, founded by Cortes in 2022, promotes “pro-worker patriotic populism,” emphasizing stricter immigration enforcement, public-safety policy, trade protection, and U.S. manufacturing. Its website lists Cortes as founder and outlines media and policy advocacy aimed at strengthening the American workforce.
