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Politics · North America

Mullin touts zero migrant releases as Arizona wall construction continues

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the administration had recorded zero releases of migrants caught entering the United States illegally during its first 17 months. He linked that milestone to border-wall construction, while a local report said work on a second wall near Palominas was continuing.

AI-assisted synthesis · Based on 3 outlets' reportingHow it's made

View timeline · 5 entries
3 outletsLatest reporting 3 min read
Coverage: Too few ratedL 0 · C 0 · R 1 · 2 unrated
File photo
Photo: U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

What happened

Key facts

  • Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the administration recorded zero releases of migrants caught trying to enter the United States illegally during its first 17 months (per New York Post).
  • Mullin said the Arizona border area had seen between 500,000 and 1 million migrants apprehended and released during the Biden years, while acknowledging that the exact number might not be known because of incomplete records (per New York Post, kgun9.com).
  • Construction was continuing on a second border wall near Palominas, Arizona (per kgun9.com, New York Post).
  • Mullin said apprehensions at the southern border were down 95 percent compared with the Biden administration (per kgun9.com).
  • Mullin said the sector had more than 500,000 known gotaways (per kgun9.com, New York Post).
  • Mullin said that 2,268 people he described as terrorists had been arrested since President Donald Trump took office (per kgun9.com).

The brief

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the administration had recorded zero releases of migrants caught trying to enter the United States illegally during its first 17 months, presenting the figure as a milestone in its border policy. He connected it to construction of a recently completed stretch of President Donald Trump's border wall.

The zero-release figure and that connection are Mullin's account; the reporting does not independently verify them. A separate report from KGUN 9 said construction was continuing on a second border wall near Palominas, Arizona. The account also said Mullin visited the construction site.

The two reports describe work on a completed stretch and ongoing construction on a second wall, respectively; neither establishes that the ongoing work has been completed. Mullin said apprehensions at the southern border had fallen 95 percent compared with the Biden administration.

He also said the sector had more than 500,000 known “gotaways.” KGUN 9 reported those figures as Mullin's statements; the account does not provide independent confirmation or define the periods and methods behind the comparisons.

Mullin gave another estimate for the Arizona border area, saying it had seen between 500,000 and 1 million migrants apprehended and released during the Biden years. The New York Post reported that he acknowledged the exact figure might remain unknown because the previous administration kept incomplete records.

This estimate concerns apprehensions and releases, while the “gotaways” claim concerns people Mullin said were known to have crossed without being apprehended; the reports do not establish that the figures measure the same group. Mullin also said 2,268 people he described as terrorists had been arrested since Trump took office.

The report does not give details about the arrests or independently establish the basis for that description. Separately, TheTravel reported that the Department of Homeland Security estimated 2.2 million people had self-deported and that the administration had said it deported almost 900,000 people and arrested more than 900,000 others by May 17.

Those figures describe broader enforcement claims and are not the same measure as Mullin's zero-release statement. The reports therefore present several administration figures about releases, apprehensions, crossings, arrests, deportations and self-departures, alongside differing stages of wall construction.

The figures are attributed to Mullin or the Department of Homeland Security rather than independently verified in the accounts. The reporting does not establish how the claimed zero releases relate to the separate estimates, or what methods were used to calculate them.

Why it matters

  • The administration's claimed zero releases concerns migrants caught trying to enter the United States illegally; the reports do not independently verify the figure or explain its calculation.
  • Mullin's 95 percent drop in apprehensions and his claim of more than 500,000 known gotaways concern different border measures, and the reports do not specify comparable measurement periods.
  • The New York Post account says Mullin put prior apprehensions and releases in the Arizona border area at between 500,000 and 1 million, while noting that incomplete records may prevent an exact count.
  • The Department of Homeland Security's estimate of 2.2 million self-departures and the administration's claims of almost 900,000 deportations and more than 900,000 arrests by May 17 describe separate enforcement outcomes.

What to watch next

  • Whether Homeland Security provides calculation methods or records supporting Mullin's zero-release claim.
  • Whether the continuing construction on the second border wall near Palominas reaches completion.
  • Whether Homeland Security supplies details supporting its estimate of 2.2 million self-departures.
  • Whether the administration gives further documentation for the arrest, deportation and apprehension figures reported.

How it's being covered

Coverage analysisShow details
3 source articles · 3 unique outlets
Coverage mix: Too few rated· 1 Right
Where the outlets are based: Unknown 67% · US/Canada 33%
Coverage mix
Too few rated
Left
Center
Right
0 outlets
0 outlets
1 outlet
The marker shows coverage balance: each unique outlet counts once. 2 unrated outlets are not included.
Geography
Where the outlets covering this story are based.
3 unique outletsDominant coverage: US/Canada
How we measure coverage

How outlets' accounts compare

3 framing differences · 3 uncorroborated claims · 6 information gaps
Sources broadly agree on the core facts but frame the story differently.Compared across 3 reports whose full text Updat3 used.
Framing / emphasis differences
Sources agree on the facts but emphasise different angles, actors or consequences.
  • The New York Post centers Mullin's zero-release claim and his link between that milestone and a recently completed wall stretch; KGUN 9 emphasizes continuing work on a second wall near Palominas and reports Mullin's border statistics.
  • TheTravel focuses on broader self-departure, deportation and arrest estimates rather than the Arizona wall or Mullin's zero-release claim.
  • Mullin attributed the claimed zero-release milestone to the administration's border policy and linked it to a completed wall stretch; the reports do not independently establish that causal connection.
Updat3: The underlying facts agree; only the emphasis differs.
One-sided or uncorroborated claims
Claims that come from one party or one source family and are not independently corroborated.
  • Mullin said the administration recorded zero releases of migrants caught trying to enter illegally during its first 17 months.
  • Mullin claimed apprehensions at the southern border were down 95 percent compared with the Biden administration.
  • Mullin said the sector had more than 500,000 known gotaways.
Updat3: Not independently corroborated yet — treat as a claim, not an established fact.
Not established by the reporting
Information the available reporting does not contain or confirm. This is a gap, not a disagreement.
  • The reports do not provide an independently verified count of migrants released after apprehension during the administration's first 17 months.
  • The reports do not give a defined method or comparable time periods for the claimed 95 percent decline in apprehensions.
  • The reports do not provide a detailed accounting of the arrests behind Mullin's statement about 2,268 people he described as terrorists.
  • Mullin's zero-release statement, the 95 percent decline in apprehensions, and his estimates of gotaways and prior apprehensions and releases are not independently verified in the reports.
  • The New York Post account says Mullin acknowledged that the precise estimate of prior apprehensions and releases may be unknowable because of incomplete records.
  • The reports do not explain how the zero-release claim relates to the administration's separate deportation, arrest and self-departure figures.
Updat3: Updat3 cannot conclude anything about this from the current sources.

Timeline

Developments from this story's sources, dated background we compiled and fact-checked, and our earlier coverage. Each row says which.
  1. The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act, signed September 30, 1996, authorized additional fencing near San Diego.
    Background · from our historical context
  2. The Secure Fence Act, signed October 26, 2006, called for expanded pedestrian fencing along parts of the southwestern border.
    Background · from our historical context
  3. On January 25, 2017, Trump’s Executive Order 13767 directed the federal government to plan and build a border wall.
    Background · from our historical context
  4. The Trump administration began using Title 42 public-health authority to expel some migrants at the border in March 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
    Background · from our historical context
  5. The Biden administration ended those expulsions on May 11, 2023, when the federal COVID-19 public-health emergency expired, and returned to processing under immigration law.
    Background · from our historical context

How we got here

On January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump issued Executive Order 14165, “Securing Our Borders,” directing federal agencies to resume border-wall construction and change how people entering the United States without authorization were processed.

The order followed a first-term wall program that had been curtailed under President Joe Biden; Biden’s January 20, 2021, proclamation paused construction and redirected funds while the administration reviewed the projects. The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act, signed September 30, 1996, authorized additional fencing near San Diego.

Original sources

1 of 3 articles · US/Canada · Show all

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