FBI Director Kash Patel highlighted what he described as a record-setting first year at the helm of the bureau during an appearance on Fox News last week, citing major gains in capturing fugitives from the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list. Patel appeared on “Hannity” after host Sean Hannity noted that the FBI has apprehended six of its Ten Most Wanted fugitives in just one year.
Hannity contrasted that performance with the previous administration, stating that only four fugitives from the list were captured over four years.
Patel said the difference reflects a fundamental change in how the bureau operates.
“The simple juxtaposition is that there was a weaponized bureau, a politicized bureau to go after political targets including President Trump and myself, versus the bureau of today that goes based on law and facts and works with our prosecutors,” Patel said.
He said the FBI has placed approximately 1,000 additional agents into the field to focus on violent crime and fugitive apprehension.
“These agents are working around the clock and around the world to bring justice,” Patel said.
“That is why you see these record numbers. Six top 10 captures in one year, which has never been done before, and we’re just getting started,” he added.
The FBI announced the milestone following the January arrest of Ten Most Wanted fugitive Alejandro Rosales Castillo.
Patel joined FBI Charlotte Special Agent in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Chief Estella D. Patterson to announce Castillo’s return to Charlotte, North Carolina.
Castillo was captured in Pachuca, Hidalgo, Mexico, on Jan. 16, 2026.
The FBI said its Legal Attaché Office in Mexico City coordinated with Agencia de Investigación Criminal-INTERPOL and Mexico’s Secretaría de Seguridad y Protección Ciudadana to take Castillo into custody and secure his transfer to U.S. authorities.
Castillo was placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on Oct. 24, 2017.
He is accused in the 2016 murder of 23-year-old Truc Quan Sandy Ly Le, whose body was found in a wooded area of Cabarrus County, North Carolina.
State charges were filed in Mecklenburg County in November 2016, including first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping, robbery with a dangerous weapon, and larceny of a motor vehicle.
A federal arrest warrant was issued in February 2017 for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.
“Alejandro Castillo is one of six Ten Most Wanted fugitives apprehended under this FBI in less than one year,” Patel said in a statement.
He credited President Donald Trump, Attorney General Pam Bondi, and international law enforcement partners for the successful operation.
“Castillo had been on the run in Mexico for nearly a decade, evading charges for the 2016 murder of Sandy Ly Le, but he is now back in the United States to face justice,” Patel said.
“I hope today will begin to provide peace and comfort for Sandy’s family, knowing her alleged killer will finally face long-awaited accountability,” he added.
Barnacle said the arrest demonstrates the FBI’s determination to pursue fugitives regardless of time or borders.
“Time, distance, and borders will not protect those who commit violent crimes,” he said.
Patterson said the transfer of custody marked a critical step toward justice for the victim’s family.
U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson said the case shows criminals cannot evade justice by fleeing the country.
“We got him,” Ferguson said.
Mecklenburg County District Attorney Spencer D. Merriweather III said Castillo’s apprehension marks the beginning of the judicial process rather than its conclusion.
The FBI said multiple federal, state, local, and international agencies assisted in the investigation and extradition.