Republican state legislators have introduced a plan to increase penalties for illegal immigrants and those believed to be part of South American crime rings breaking into high-end Oakland County homes and elsewhere.
Co-sponsored by several Republican state lawmakers including five from Oakland County — Mike Harris, Tom Kuhn, Donni Steele, Matthew Maddock and Mark Tisdel — the amendments to House Bill 5650 was introduced by Rep. David Martin on April 23 and referred to the Committee on Government Operations.
Amendments to House Bill 5650 call for an increase up to 50% of the maximum penalty for a first-time offense for crimes committed to benefit transnational crime organizations, and up to double for second and subsequent offenses. It also would raise penalties for those who return to the country illegally after being deported and then commit other felonies.
The proposed heightened penalties are in response to a string of home invasions in Oakland County and other communities that investigators say are the work of a Chilean crime network operating across the United States. Late last year, a task force made up of federal, state and local authorities was formed to address a series of high-end home burglaries that happened over several months in Oakland County where millions of dollars in jewelry, cash and other items were reported stolen. Last month, another round of residential break-ins were reported including two in Bloomfield Township that Sheriff Mike Bouchard said had a “super, super, super, super similar” pattern to an earlier rash of break-ins traced to Chilean suspects.
Bouchard also said earlier intelligence reports suggested at least 100 Chilean teams were operating across the county; investigators in other states have tied cases to groups of criminals from Colombia and Venezuela.
Regarding the proposed legislation, Bouchard on Wednesday told The Oakland Press: “I think anything that deters people from traveling from other countries to commit crimes here is a good thing. A higher penalty may be part of that deterrence.”
In a news release issued this week by Michigan House Republicans, Harris stated: “International criminals who exploited and violated our immigration laws have raided homes in Oakland County, damaging property and stealing valuables from local families. Law enforcement officers are diligently going after these thieves, and heavier penalties can better deter and punish these crime rings. Increasing penalties for crimes committed on behalf of transnational crime organizations will give prosecutors and judges tools to crack down on the criminals our police arrest.”
Harris, a retired Waterford police sergeant, also said teams of criminals from Central and South America are taking advantage of the border crisis and weak federal immigration laws to enter the U.S. and break into homes throughout the United States, especially in Oakland County. As further stated in the news release, “multiple illegal aliens have been arrested for violent crimes in Michigan in recent months, including murder, soliciting sex with a minor, and sexual assault.”
“The federal government has failed to secure our border, and criminals are seizing the opportunity to enter our country,” Harris said. “Deported illegal immigrants who come back to commit felonies deserve more severe sentences for their crimes.”
Harris also criticized a program launched by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer which offers taxpayer-funded rent subsidies to immigrants, including those with a pending asylum application. According to the news release, “97% of asylum seekers last fiscal year entered the country illegally and only claimed asylum as a defense to delay deportation after they got caught.”
According to the Executive Office for Immigration Review, as of 2024’s first fiscal quarter, 1,032,940 asylum cases were pending, compared to 170,057 pending cases 10 years ago.
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