Danville Police Chief Daniel J. Weckesser shed light on the complexities law enforcement faces regarding illegal immigration, particularly in relation to vehicle usage and enforcement limitations.
He is one of three candidates running in the March 19 Republican primary seeking to replace Knox County Sheriff David Shaffer.
Weckesser highlighted the issue of individuals driving vehicles registered under other names, making it difficult for law enforcement to intervene unless a traffic infraction occurs.
“They are driving vehicles in someone else’s name. So that way when we run their license plates it will come back as valid,” Weckesser told Mount Vernon News.
“So until they do a traffic infraction we can’t stop them. A lot of times we’ll know they are illegals because they’ll look at us real tense."
He emphasized the importance of adhering to legal immigration processes.
“So I believe everyone should have a chance for a new lifestyle, but they need to do it legally and go through the process,” Weckesser said.
During a Feb. 20 candidate question and answer session at the Woodward Opera House Weckesser expressed frustration at the current lack of legislative support, stating the necessity of federal or state laws to enable law enforcement to address illegal immigration effectively.
“Definitely a problem,” he said. “We're gonna have to wait till the federal government, and/or state government comes up with some laws that we can go by so that we can start arresting these individuals if they're in our country illegally. It's hard on all of us law enforcement officers to let these individuals go.”
Weckesser affirmed that Danville does what it can to handle the illegal immigrant problem.
However, he underscored the financial strain and limitations in holding such individuals, urging for comprehensive solutions to address the ongoing issue.
“The problem is here, we deal with it on a regular basis,” he said. “We catch them driving without driver's license, no insurance. You name it. And at our agency, they do not drive away. If they don't have a driver's license and they don't have no insurance, that car or that vehicle's impounded, and they will be. So they'll be cited for it. But that's about the most we can do at this point, because we cannot jail them. We could but can't hold them and it just costs a lot of money. So it is a huge problem that we're all going to have to deal with in the future.”
Over 7.2 million illegal immigrants have entered the United States under the Biden Administration.
Earlier reports noted Ohio communities were expecting thousands of illegal immigrants to enter Ohio, mostly from Central and South America.
The discussion about illegal immigration in Knox County comes in the wake of the arrest of a Chinese national in a cryptocurrency scam.
In late January the FBI arrested Lin Kai at Lowe’s Home Improvement in Mount Vernon noting his alleged involvement in a money laundering conspiracy case dating back to September 2023.
