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{{Short description|Unit of Native American trackers for ICE}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2024}}
The "'''Shadow Wolves'''" are a [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] tactical patrol unit assigned to [[U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement|Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)]] in Sells, [[Arizona]] located on the [[Tohono Oʼodham Nation]] that runs along the [[Mexico–United States border]].<ref name="smit">{{Cite journal |first=Mark |last=Wheeler |date=January 2003 |title=Shadow Wolves |url=http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/shadow-wolves-74485304/?all |journal=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]] |access-date=July 2, 2016}}</ref>

The Shadow Wolves specialize in the [[interdiction]] of human and drug [[smuggler]]s in the [[Sonoran Desert]], utilizing both technology and the traditional [[Tracking (hunting)|tracking]] methods. In addition to the use of high-tech equipment, the unit relies on tracking techniques such as "cutting for sign", which includes investigating any kind of physical evidence left by smugglers (e.g., footprints, tire tracks, thread, clothing).<ref name=":0" /> The Shadow Wolves are the Department of Homeland Security's only Native American tracking unit specifically utilized for targeted interdiction operations.<ref name="nytimes.com">{{Cite news |last1=Archibold |first1=Randal C. |date=7 March 2007 |title=In Arizona Desert, Indian Trackers vs. Smugglers |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/07/washington/07wolves.html?pagewanted=2&_r=2&hp}}</ref>

The unit was established by Congressional mandate in 1974 in response to rampant smuggling occurring through the Tohono O’odham Nation.<ref>{{Cite web |title=H.R.5681 - Shadow Wolves Enhancement Act |url=https://www.congress.gov/congressional-report/117th-congress/house-report/246/1 |access-date=2023-05-04 |website=www.congress.gov |language=en}}</ref>

==History==
{{further|United States Army Indian Scouts|Eskimo Scouts}}
The "Shadow Wolves" law enforcement unit was created in 1974 by an [[Act of Congress|Act]] of [[United States Congress|Congress]], after the [[United States federal government|U.S. federal government]] agreed to the [[Tohono O'odham Nation]]'s demand that the officers have at least one fourth Native American ancestry.<ref name="nyt" />  The Shadow Wolves became the first federal law enforcement agents allowed to operate on [[Tohono O'odham|Tohono]] land.<ref name="nyt" />
[[File:Shadow-wolves-uscustoms.jpg|thumb|Members of the Shadow Wolves.]]
The unit is congressionally authorized to have as many as 21 members but, as of March, 2007, it consisted of only 15 members.<ref name="nyt">{{Cite news |last=Archibold |first=Randal C. |date=2007-03-07 |title=In Arizona Desert, Indian Trackers vs. Smugglers |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/07/washington/07wolves.html |access-date=2023-04-22 |issn=0362-4331}} {{subscription required}}</ref>{{Update needed|date=February 2023|reason=Original data is from March 2007.}} Members of the unit come from nine different tribes, including the [[Tohono O'odham]], [[Blackfoot Confederacy|Blackfeet]], [[Lakota people|Lakota]], [[Navajo people|Navajo]], [[Omaha people|Omaha]], [[Sioux]], and [[Yaqui people|Yaqui]].<ref name="nyt" /><ref name="aus" />

Originally part of the [[United States Customs Service|U.S Customs Service]], the Shadow Wolves became part of the [[Department of Homeland Security]] in 2003, when the U.S. Customs Service was folded into DHS.

On December 22, 2021, during the 117th Congress, Rep. John Katko (R-NY-24) introduced [https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/5681 H.R. 5681], which proposed to broaden the Shadow Wolves' authorities while preserving the important legacy of the unit. The bill became [https://www.congress.gov/117/plaws/publ113/PLAW-117publ113.pdf Public Law 117-113] on April 19, 2022. The law provides flexibility to reclassify the Shadow Wolves, current and future, from GS-1801 Tactical Officers to GS-1811 Special Agents.
[[File:Shadow-wolves-patch.jpg|thumb|Uniform patch for the Shadow Wolves.]]
The Tohono Oʼodham Nation, patrolled by the Shadow Wolves, covers {{convert|2800000|acre|km2}}, including a 76 mile (122 kilometer) stretch of land shared with Mexico. It is mainly made up of small, scattered villages.<ref name="nytimes.com" /> Between 2010 and 2020, interdiction and investigative efforts the Shadow Wolves have led or participated in have resulted in 437 drug and immigration arrests along with the seizure of over 117,264 pounds of drugs, 45 weapons, 251 vehicles and $847,928 in U.S. currency.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Shadow Wolves |url=https://www.ice.gov/factsheets/shadow-wolves |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=www.ice.gov |date=29 October 2021 |language=en}}</ref>

==Global training missions==
In addition to tracking smugglers on the U.S. border, the Shadow Wolves have also been asked to train [[border guard]]s and customs agents in other jurisdictions, including [[Latvia]], [[Lithuania]], [[Moldova]], [[Estonia]], [[Kazakhstan]], and [[Uzbekistan]].<ref name="smit" /><ref name="aus">[http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21364526-2703,00.html "Native American trackers to hunt bin Laden,"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070313190942/http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21364526-2703,00.html |date=2007-03-13 }} ''The Australian'',  March 12, 2007. Retrieved March 12, 2007.</ref><ref name="rfe">[http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2004/10/1a6c5d01-2136-4760-99f6-0a9fecb841bc.html "Moldova: Native American 'Shadow Wolves' Helping Train Moldovan Guards To Protect Borders,"] ''[[Radio Free Europe]]'',  October 5, 2004. Retrieved March 14, 2007.</ref>  The unit was also used in the effort to hunt terrorists along the border of [[Afghanistan]] and [[Pakistan]] by training regional border guards in Native American ancestral tracking methods.<ref name="aus" /><ref name="fox">[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,258335,00.html "Report: Native American Trackers to Hunt Terrorists at Afghan Border"], [[Fox News]], March 12, 2007. Retrieved March 12, 2007.</ref>

== In popular culture ==
* A documentary film about the Shadow Wolves, ''Shadow Wolves: Tracking of a Documentary'', was directed by Jack Kohler and produced by Joseph Arthur.<ref>Tribal Point Media http://www.Tribalpoint.net {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090608024227/http://www.tribalpoint.net/ |date=2009-06-08 }}</ref> The documentary profiles an intertribal group of Native Americans.
* The Shadow Wolves were featured in the [[National Geographic Channel]] show ''Border Wars'' in the episode titled "Walk the Line".<ref name="NGC">[http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/border-wars/3596/Overview "Border Wars: Walk the Line"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100420044308/http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/border-wars/3596/Overview |date=2010-04-20 }}, National Geographic Channel, retrieved May 5, 2010.</ref>
* ''Shadow Wolves'' is a 2019 movie that is loosely based on real-life Shadow Wolves.<ref>{{Citation |last=Daines |first=McKay |title=Shadow Wolves |date=2020-02-17 |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8031130/ |type=Action, Adventure, Thriller |publisher=Caedmon Entertainment, OutEast Entertainment, Triomphe Communications |access-date=2023-02-08}}</ref>
* In the 2020 film ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog (film)|Sonic the Hedgehog]]'', Dr. Robotnik remarks that he learned tracking skills from Shadow Wolves.<ref>Michael Rougeau, [https://www.gamespot.com/gallery/sonic-the-hedgehog-movie-all-the-easter-eggs-and-r/2900-3383/ "Sonic The Hedgehog Movie: All The Easter Eggs And References You May Have Missed"], ''Gamespot'', February 21, 2020</ref>
* The protagonist of the 2017 [[Steven Seagal]] novel, ''[[The Way of the Shadow Wolves]]'', is a member of the Shadow Wolves.
* A film about the Shadow Wolves from KosFilms and to be directed by Brian Kosiksy, called ''Call of the Shadow Wolves,'' was reportedly preparing for production in southern Arizona in October 2009.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Call of the Shadow Wolves Prepares to Film |url=https://www.prweb.com/releases/BrianKosiskyKosFilms/CallofTheShadowWolves/prweb2670074.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090727114438/http://www.prweb.com/releases/BrianKosiskyKosFilms/CallofTheShadowWolves/prweb2670074.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 27, 2009 |access-date=2023-02-08 |website=PRWeb}}</ref>{{Update after|2023|4|22}}

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
* [https://www.ice.gov/factsheets/shadow-wolves Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)] fact sheet.
[[Category:Border guards]]
[[Category:Mexico–United States border]]
[[Category:Native American topics]]
[[Category:Smuggling in the United States]]
[[Category:Tohono O'odham]]
[[Category:United States Department of Homeland Security]]
[[Category:United States Army Indian Scouts]]