(NewsNation) — New numbers show surging numbers of Chinese nationals at the southern border, with law enforcement sources on the ground sounding the alarm at their deliberate infiltration of small-town America.

In particular, there’s concern over successful efforts to launch illicit drug manufacturing operations in America’s heartland.

New numbers from Homeland Security Republicans show more than 24,000 Chinese nationals have been encountered at the southwest border so far in 2024. In just six months, that number has surpassed all encounters with Chinese nationals in the last fiscal and that number is expected to grow.

NewsNation cameras were rolling near San Diego last year, where exclusive video showed long lines of Chinese men with bags packed, being processed by border control along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The surge has captured the attention of 50 lawmakers, who penned a strongly-worded letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, warning about the ongoing threat. They are particularly concerned with a booming illicit marijuana industry and the likelihood that it could bleed into other violent crimes threatening Americans.

The lawmakers wrote, “The thousands of illicit Chinese marijuana growing operations pose a direct threat to public safety, human rights, national security and the addiction crisis gripping our nation.”

Reports indicate the Chinese organized crime rings are highly connected to the Chinese Communist Party.

A leaked memo from the Department of Homeland Security indicated 270 illegal marijuana grows in Maine generated some $4 billion in revenue. In Oklahoma, 2,000 marijuana farms have been linked to China.

During a Congressional hearing this week, lawmakers discussed the ongoing threat posed by the CCP and its efforts to disrupt legitimate American businesses and conduct long-standing espionage.

They also said China is directly fueling America’s fentanyl crisis by providing the chemicals used to produce the drug.

On Thursday, Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., one of the lawmakers who signed on to the letter, confronted Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas about the ongoing threat.

“Communist China has poisoned our nation and taken the lives of more than 75,000 Americans each and every year,” Scott said. “I assume that you know this but I can’t see anything that shows that you care about it.”

Mayorkas responded to the contrary.

“We are seeking to tackle that challenge in a very difficult relationship,” he said. “We are very focused on the scourge of fentanyl from all perspectives.”

The southern border isn’t the only entry route for Chinese nationals, with more than 1,000 crossing the northern border every month for the past five months.

NewsNation has been constantly following this story for more than a year and will continue to keep an eye on the trends as lawmakers work to find a solution.