Border Patrol Sells Commemorative Coins Celebrating 2025 Immigration Enforcement Surges, Fundraising Via Facility-Linked Nonprofits

U.S. Border Patrol agents are raising funds by selling custom challenge coins and other merchandise commemorating last year’s national wave of immigration enforcement operations, with proceeds directed to nonprofit groups that list Border Patrol facilities as their official addresses on IRS filings. At least two of these nonprofits operate using dedicated U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) email accounts.

One coin up for sale bears “NORTH AMERICAN TOUR 2025” on its front, alongside the U.S. Border Patrol acronym and “FAFO” — the shorthand for “fuck around and find out,” a phrase first popularized by the far-right Proud Boys that has since been adopted by multiple former Trump administration officials. The coin’s center features illustrations of a gas mask, riot control smoke grenade, and pepper ball launcher. On the reverse, it shows a portrait of recently retired Border Patrol commander-at-large Gregory Bovino mid-salute, paired with the text “COMING TO A CITY NEAR YOU!” It also lists seven U.S. cities that saw major federal immigration enforcement surges in 2025: Chicago, Los Angeles, Memphis, Phoenix, Portland, Charlotte, and Atlanta.

The coin is sold by Willcox Morale Welfare and Recreation (Willcox MWR), a tax-exempt nonprofit granted that status by the IRS during the Biden administration. Its official IRS address matches the Willcox Border Patrol Station in Arizona. A request for comment sent to Willcox MWR’s dedicated CBP email address received no response.

As Border Patrol’s parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) allows current employees to form private, non-profit employee associations so long as groups earn formal agency recognition and follow official rules. Per DHS policy, recognized groups may fundraise using government property and produce merchandise with the agency’s name and logos — but all activity requires advance CBP approval.

Willcox MWR is one of dozens of similar groups across the U.S. that serve Border Patrol personnel and use the “MWR” label, borrowed from the U.S. military’s official Morale, Welfare and Recreation programs. These groups typically host holiday events and retirement parties, and often raise funds for agents’ families facing hardship, including those furloughed without pay during government shutdowns.

After this reporting was finalized for publication, CBP spokesperson Hilton Beckham told WIRED that Willcox MWR and the other nonprofits named in this story predate the current administration, and had “received authorization to conduct limited commercial activities on CBP-occupied property.” Beckham added that the agency is in the process of updating its policies and oversight procedures for these independent MWR groups.

Most MWR groups sell custom challenge coins, a longstanding military and law enforcement tradition to commemorate specific teams or events. While any person — including CBP alumni — can design and sell challenge coins, current DHS employees are barred from using government resources to sell unapproved coins that feature CBP seals or logos, or coins the agency deems inappropriate or unprofessional.

“CBP takes its branding and recognition policies seriously,” Beckham said, but declined to confirm whether the agency’s Publication and Branding Review Board, the body responsible for approving branded CBP merchandise, had approved the North American Tour coin design.

Under a Willcox MWR Facebook post promoting the North American Tour coin, a commenter named Juan Diego wrote, “Sign up SDC BK5 MWR for 10.” The Willcox MWR account admin replied, “Shoot us an email,” and shared an address ending in the official cbp.dhs.gov domain, confirming the group’s access to official government email.

SDC BK5 MWR is also a registered nonprofit, and its website lists an address matching a CBP government facility in Chula Vista, California. The group states it was founded by San Diego Sector Border Patrol agents, and sells custom merchandise “designed to raise funds for morale and relief efforts.” Diego did not respond to a request for comment.

The SDC BK5 MWR website lists more than 200 products in addition to the North American Tour coin, including multiple other operation-themed commemorative coins. One is the “Chicago Midway Blitz” challenge coin, shaped like a gas mask that doubles as a bottle opener. Its edges are embossed with the names of municipalities and neighborhoods targeted in last fall’s Operation Midway Blitz. Like the North American Tour coin, it features the U.S. Border Patrol logo and the FAFO acronym. Opponents of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in Illinois have condemned the item.

“The pain and suffering caused by Operation Midway Blitz and President Trump’s other targeted mass deportation campaigns will forever leave a stain on communities across the country — including Chicago,” a spokesperson for Illinois Senator Dick Durbin said in a statement. “Now, Border Patrol employees are seemingly using federal resources to sell disturbing challenge coins that promote President Trump politically and celebrate the havoc they caused.”

A second coin listing, removed from the site by the time of this writing, is shaped like a gas canister and marked “THE BATTLE OF LOS ANGELES SUMMER OF 2025,” with the Border Patrol logo rising over a palm tree-dotted LA skyline. A third coin, also pulled from the site before publication, parodies the cover of Charlotte’s Web, reworking the art to show the children’s book’s characters in police uniforms and retitling it “OPERATION CHARLOTTE’S WEB” — a reference to the 2025 DHS enforcement surge in North Carolina. The coin’s reverse openly notes the operation “sparked protests and caused business disruptions in immigrant-heavy areas” and that “local officials expressed concern about effects on community trust.”

“The item for sale on this website, identified by WIRED, constitutes an unauthorized use of the intellectual property associated with a beloved children’s book,” a representative for HarperCollins Publishers, Charlotte’s Web’s original publisher, said in a statement. “We will promptly issue a cease-and-desist letter.”

CBP did not respond to questions about whether it had approved any of the coin designs. WIRED spoke with a person affiliated with SDC BK5 MWR who said the group originally purchased the coins from a third party and had no plans to restock them. Shortly after that conversation, SDC BK5 MWR removed all operation-themed coins WIRED inquired about from its site.

Even non-operation merchandise raises potential intellectual property concerns. Another MWR nonprofit based at an Arizona Border Patrol facility, Casa Grande Station MWR, is no longer accepting orders as of this writing, but previously listed a custom “Funko Pop” agent coin on its site. Multiple variants of the coin remain for sale on SDC BK5 MWR’s website. Casa Grande representatives did not respond to requests for comment, and a person familiar with Funko’s internal operations confirmed to WIRED the coins are unsanctioned and not official Funko products.

Unapproved, offensive challenge coins tied to Border Patrol have circulated for years on resale platforms and within agency workplaces, though the federal government has repeatedly disavowed responsibility for them. In 2022, an eBay-listed coin featuring a photo of a Border Patrol agent grabbing a Haitian migrant by the shirt sparked outrage and an internal CBP Office of Professional Responsibility investigation. Then-CBP Commissioner Chris Magnus told NPR at the time that such coins “have no place in a professional law enforcement agency.” In 2019, ProPublica reported an unofficial coin circulating in California and Texas Border Patrol workplaces emblazoned with “KEEP THE CARAVANS COMING,” depicting a group of migrants and a Border Patrol agent bottle-feeding a migrant baby. Officials confirmed the coin never received government approval.

Updated 3:15 pm ET, April 6, 2026: Added comment from CBP.