San Francisco’s status as a sanctuary city fueling 'real estate boom' in Honduras due to drug dealing: Report
Migrant drug dealers are making so much money in the sanctuary city of San Francisco that it's causing a housing boom back in Honduras, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}According to the San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco’s status as a sanctuary city has allowed Honduran migrant drug dealers to make so much money dealing in the city that they’re causing a "real estate boom" back home with what they send to their families and friends.
The drugs that they have been selling, in what the paper described as "open air markets" in the city – much of it being fentanyl – have allowed many of them to make more than six figures a year, money which goes to building "mansions" in the Third World country.
The outlet noted how migrants claim the city’s "status as a sanctuary city" makes it "more attractive" to Honduran dealers. The Chronicle spoke to dozens of Honduran migrants who are, or who have been involved with the drug trade in San Francisco, who noted sanctuary city laws mean "a lower risk of lengthy jail time and deportation if convicted."
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A piece in the San Francisco Chronicle reported how drug dealing migrants claim San Francisco's "status as a sanctuary city" encourage rampant drug dealing from Honduran migrants. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
The paper began by describing the impact the major drug dealing operation in San Francisco has had on the "Siria Valley, a cluster of villages about 80 miles north of the capital, Tegucigalpa," in Honduras.
It noted that "Handsome new homes, some mansions by local standards, some mansions by any standard, rise behind customized iron gates emblazoned with San Francisco 49ers or Golden State Warriors logos" in this impoverished area thanks to the money made by residents who have since moved to San Francisco to deal drugs.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The paper noted that the "majority of the Honduran dealers in San Francisco are from the Siria Valley." It claimed, "The dealers, some of whom refer to themselves as ‘Hondos,’ are one of many groups selling drugs in the Bay Area. But they began dominating the open-air drug markets in the Tenderloin and South of Market neighborhoods during the pandemic."
Several of the dealers who spoke to the outlet claimed "they can make as much as $350,000 a year — or even more if they help run a local operation. At least some of that money is sent back to the valley’s villages, where it is fueling a real estate boom."
One dealer described how as a child he used to see an older generation of dealers returning to the Siria Valley from San Francisco, telling the paper they were "popular because of the cars and money. So everybody wanted the same."
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Drug users and drug dealers across the street from the San Francisco Federal Building. (Fox News Digital / Jon Michael Raasch)
The paper noted the drugs being sold by these dealers "include fentanyl, the cheap, highly addictive synthetic opioid that is driving the current record pace of overdose deaths in San Francisco."
According to several of the dealers, San Francisco’s "status as a sanctuary city makes it more attractive to the Honduran dealers," the article claimed, adding that "it means a lower risk of lengthy jail time and deportation if convicted."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The piece claimed, "Under the central tenet of the sanctuary law, the city jail does not allow ICE to place holds on local prisoners, so they can be picked up upon release and deported. The only way most dealers face deportation is if they are arrested on federal charges or in another city.
The Chronicle continued, stating, "Almost all of the alleged dealers are released on their own recognizance before trial, which means they do not have to post bond but may be required to check in regularly with a case manager. Some get assigned to diversion programs or have charges dismissed, while others plead guilty to lesser, non-drug charges."
It added, "The rest either go on trial or skip court proceedings and have warrants issued for their arrest."
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In total, the outlet noted that only "Six percent of people charged with drug-sale crimes in San Francisco from 2018 to 2022 have so far been convicted on a drug charge. Others pleaded guilty to lesser crimes, had charges dismissed or completed diversion."
The paper claimed it spoke "numerous dealers who were deported but re-entered the country illegally and returned" to the area.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News Digital reached out to the San Francisco Department of Public Health for comment on the Chronicle’s article. This article will be updated with any response.