DHS Tanks

For John, BLUF:  No, DHS doesn't have several thousand tanks.

There has been some talk about the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) acquiring a large number of AFVs.♠  Numbers of 2,000 and 3,000 have been used.  This article suggests that the number is 16 and the type vehicle is the MRAP—Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected.

So, the numbers aren't very scary.  Figuring one each for New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Arizona, plus three for Texas, that leaves 11 for the other 46 states, plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam.

The question is, what does DHS do with them?

… execution of high-risk warrants—including drug trafficking, smuggling, and contraband

OK, so ICE and CBP are part off DHS, but I thought drugs was DEA, part of the Department of Justice.  And, how is the MRAP used to serve a warrant?  I have more questions now than I did before.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠ Armored Fighting Vehicle—a generic term for a number of different military vehicles, "protected by strong armour and armed with weapons, which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheeled or tracked."  Incidently, a real tank, like the M-1, Abrams, goes for $8.58 million a copy, or $8.58 billion per 1,000 tanks.  I think even The New York Times would notice that level of expenditure.