BORDER NEWS

A van crash in southern Colorado killed three people and injured the 14 other people in the vehicle.  The driver apparently lost control of the van, sending it into a ditch by the side of the road.  According to officials in Colorado, the state of Texas has issued several arrest warrants for the driver of the van, who was also its owner, although they did not know what the charges were. 

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As a result of the increasing numbers of agents along the Southwest border, people trying to enter the US without authorization are turning to more and more dangerous ways of entering.  Over the past several years, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of smugglers who lead migrants across the border. The smugglers move the immigrants often through remote areas and often abandon them to the elements.  As these methods become more difficult, smugglers have turned to new methods, some of which are very dangerous to the migrants.  For example, during the first month of 2000, immigration officials have discovered a number of people being smuggled in car trunks and secret compartments in cars, including a woman and her four-month old baby.  The number of people smuggled this way doubled from 1998 to 1999 and is expected to rise again this year.  This method of smuggling is extremely dangerous because the immigrants are sealed into areas of the car where they are exposed to high levels of potentially lethal car exhaust fumes.

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A late-night raid by the INS in Los Angeles resulted in the discovery of over one million false documents, including green cards, Social Security cards and driver’s licenses.  Five people were also arrested and are being held without bond.  This raid is part of an ongoing investigation called “Operation Fine Print,” a concerted effort by the INS to halt the use of fraudulent documents.

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The buildup of Border Patrol agents in Arizona is forcing many migrants to attempt crossing the border farther east, in New Mexico, where there are fewer agents.  The Lordsburg, New Mexico Border Patrol station, which usually sees very little action, apprehended over 1600 people during the first 19 days of the year.  This is almost one-fourth the number stopped in all of 1999.

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A court in Saipan, an island in the Pacific Ocean that is under US control, has sentenced a Chinese national to 15 years in jail for his involvement in an immigrant smuggling scheme.  Peng Shi was considered the leader of the operation, which was discovered when a smuggling ship foundered off the coast of Guam, and at his trial last fall was found to have ordered the beatings of many of the passengers.  The INS calls the sentence as “one of the stiffest ever imposed in connection with an alien smuggling case.”