El Paso officials denounce Trump's claims that border fence lowered crime

Donald Trump used the city of El Paso as an example of what he hopes a wall could accomplish. He said the city in western Texas, right on the border with Mexico, had been transformed from one of America’s most dangerous cities into one of its safest by the erection of a barrier at the border.

Trump falsely attributed El Paso’s low crime rates in the city to the border fence built in 2008. El Paso hit a record low in crime level in 2006, two years prior to the construction of the fence that separates it from Ciudad Juárez.

“El Paso was never one of the most dangerous cities in the US,” said the Republican El Paso mayor, Dee Margo.
The El Paso sheriff, Richard Wiles, also released a statement that rejected Trump’s claims about the city:

“It is sad to hear President Trump state falsehoods about El Paso, Texas, in an attempt to justify building a 2,000-mile wall. The facts are clear. While it is true that El Paso is one of the safest cities in the nation, it has never been considered one of our nation’s most dangerous cities and El Paso was a safe city long before any wall was built.”

The local business community also spoke out on Wednesday. Jon Barela, CEO of the Borderplex Alliance, an organization focused on economic development efforts in the El Paso region and former aide to former New Mexico governor Susana Martinez, expressed great concern.

“The president’s false comments about El Paso and the border are detrimental to business development and job creation. El Paso was safe long before the wall was built,”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/feb/06/el-paso-trump-state-of-the-union-border-wall