Mark Lamb, the Trump-endorsed former Pinal County sheriff running for Congress in Arizona's Fifth District, exchanged messages containing racist jokes with a member of a border vigilante group, according to screenshots obtained by The Arizona Republic.
The exchanges occurred in 2016 during Lamb's first campaign for sheriff. A Facebook user named Nick Steele, who identified himself as part of Border Narcotics Intelligence, wrote to Lamb that "BNI guys work like (N-words)." Lamb replied, "Hahahaha! So you don't do anything?" followed by laughing emojis.
Steele then clarified his meaning, saying the group worked hard because it was the right thing to do. Lamb responded positively, stating, "You guys do work hard. I'm impressed! And grateful!"
The messages also included Lamb laughing at homophobic remarks about former Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu. When Steele made caustic comments about Babeu's sexuality, Lamb wrote, "Hahahaha!" and added, "Sounds like karma is going to hopefully handle Babeu."
Additional exchanges showed Lamb responding "Hahahaha! You shut her up!" after Steele referred to a woman as a "stupid b----." They also shared laughs over a meme suggesting Hillary Clinton was a man.
William Hubbard, who handled Lamb's social media during the 2016 campaign and is Black, said Lamb called him shortly after to apologize. "He was admitting that he had replied to the messages and his replies weren't appropriate," Hubbard told The Republic. Lamb reportedly minimized the incident by saying he had only sent "ha, ha, ha."
Hubbard, whose mother grew up in the Jim Crow South, accepted the apology at the time, describing it as "a hiccup, a man who was trying too hard to be liked." Four years later, Hubbard joined efforts to remove Lamb as sheriff over separate ethical concerns.
Border Narcotics Intelligence was one of several self-appointed militia groups that patrolled the U.S.-Mexico border during the Obama administration. Steele indicated that six group members were working behind the scenes for Lamb's campaign, and Lamb thanked them without asking for details on their activities.
Lamb has maintained ties to far-right movements, including the constitutional sheriff movement, which holds that sheriffs hold absolute authority over other government officials. In 2020, he formed a citizens' posse in response to Black Lives Matter protests.
His son Cade later formed another border group called Sonoran Asset Group. During Lamb's unsuccessful 2024 Senate bid, he raised funds using a video his son recorded at the border about an alleged secret terrorist camp.
Lamb did not respond to interview requests for the article. His campaign declined to comment on the relationship with the group or what specific work its members performed.
The screenshots were part of materials provided to the Pinal County Board of Supervisors in 2020 by Hubbard and Lamb's political rival Tim Gustafson, who urged an investigation into the sheriff's conduct.
Attempts to reach Steele or the group's former director Mike Presnell were unsuccessful. The Border Narcotics Intelligence social media accounts have been inactive for years.