(The Center Square) – As illegal border crossings drop to new lows under the Trump administration, prosecutors are filing a record number of cases against illegal foreign nationals in the interior of the U.S., with the bulk being filed in Texas.

In one week, U.S. attorneys in Texas filed more than 500 border crime cases, the most of any region or state.

In the Southern District of Texas, U.S. Attorney Nicholas Ganjei’s office filed 225 cases in one week. The majority charged have felony convictions for narcotics, violent and/or sexual crimes or prior immigration offenses, according to his office. More than half, 144, face charges for illegal reentry; nine involve human smuggling; others include firearms and assaulting federal officer charges.

Among them are two men charged with “alien smuggling” resulting in two deaths, including the drowning of a 14-year-old. If convicted, they face up to life in prison or the death penalty. In one of his first executive orders, Trump directed the U.S. attorney general to instruct federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty for border crimes that resulted in death, The Center Square reported.

Others include two Salvadoran men identified as potential MS-13 gang members, one of whom is a convicted felon. Another Salvadorian national charged is a convicted sex offender previously sentenced to 60 months for second degree sexual assault, according to Ganjei’s office.

Another illegal foreign national is facing charges for allegedly assaulting two Border Patrol agents; he has four prior convictions for illegal reentry after removal, according to Ganjei’s office.

In another case, a Mexican national is facing charges of trafficking firearms after he was caught attempting to transport a 9 mm handgun and nearly 2,000 rounds of ammunition to Mexico through Brownsville. In another case, a repeat offender illegally living in Harlingen was sentence to 33 months in federal prison for illegal reentry with a criminal history of DWIs, assault family violence, criminal mischief, possession of a controlled substance, previous removals and illegal reentries.

In Corpus Christi, a Mexican national with 7 DWIs and conviction of battery was sentenced to 24 months in prison after having been removed from the country three times between 2012 and 2023. After illegally reentering again, he was arrested in August 2024, along with 10 others who were allegedly being smuggled in a commercial cargo trailer.

In another case, an illegal foreign national was convicted of human smuggling leading to death and now faces life in prison. In another case, a Mexican citizen illegally living in San Benito was indicted for allegedly committing identity theft and impersonating a U.S. citizen to apply for a U.S. passport. If convicted, she faces up to 15 years in prison.

In the Western District of Texas, U.S. Attorney Margaret Leachman’s office filed 259 immigration and border crime cases in one week.

Among them was a Mexican national illegally living in San Antonio with a criminal history of illegal reentry. He was arrested “for conspiracy to transport illegal aliens” in tractor trailers from Mexico into the U.S. He allegedly orchestrated at least 19 human smuggling events leading to the apprehension of more than 900 illegal foreign nationals between May 2021 and June 2022, according to the charges.

Another was a Mexican national and lawful permanent resident who CBP agents arrested at a port of entry in Eagle Pass after finding a semi-automatic handgun in his luggage. He admitted he was hired to transport the firearm to Mexico for $100. He was charged with smuggling goods from the United States and faces up to 10 years in prison.

In Hudspeth County, a Guatemalan national was arrested after Border Patrol agents discovered a judge ordered he be removed in 2007. He was also previously convicted on charges of cruelty to the elderly and domestic violence in 2021 and 2022. In another case, a Honduran national was arrested after Border Patrol agents discovered he was allegedly in possession of an expired immigration document and fraudulent Social Security and Lawfully Permanent Resident cards he said he purchased for $70.

Also in Hudspeth County, a Mexican national was arrested after he told Border Patrol agents he was being paid to guide illegal border crossers into the U.S. and “was obtaining routes and other information via messages from an unknown smuggler in Mexico,” according to the complaint. In another case, a Mexican national was arrested after having been previously removed from the U.S. seven times. His criminal history includes serving time for federal drug trafficking, three years in prison in Indiana for marijuana charges and resisting arrest among other prison sentences, according to the complaint.

Many charges filed were against Mexican nationals previously deported multiple times with convictions for a range of crimes.