BORDER NEWS Over the first month of Operation Denial, the INS program targeted at preventing alien smuggling through the Phoenix and Las Vegas airports, more than 2,700 people were arrested. However, agents say that they have not seen any decrease in the number of arrests at the Las Vegas airport, which surprises Marc Sanders, the assistant Officer in Charge at the INS Las Vegas office. Agents are reporting increased numbers of arrests on highways across the Southwest, indicating that some smugglers, at least, are changing their tactics.
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Last week we mentioned a cargo ship whose crew thought they heard noises from within one of the containers on board. The ship was diverted to a remote Alaskan port and many INS agents were flown in to inspect the ship. A thorough inspection of the ship revealed that there were no stowaways on board. It seems that perhaps the INS, eager to win public favor with a rescue of people trapped in a cargo container, made more of the situation than was warranted before learning all of the facts.
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A neo-Nazi wanted for a parole violation in Germany is seeking asylum in the US in an effort to avoid deportation. Hendrik Mobus, 24, was convicted of a racially motivated murder in 1994. In his asylum application he argues that the German government wants to persecute him for his political views. Along with the parole violation, the German government has accused him of more crimes committed while on parole, including a public statement that he would never surrender to authorities, and a statement that the murder of which he was convicted was not a crime because his victim was not Aryan. Mobus is not likely to be successful since he will likely be excluded from the US based on security grounds.
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Last June Mexican television cameras recorded the drowning of two men in the Rio Grande. People on both sides of the border were shocked that although there were US Border Patrol agents and Mexican Grupo Beta agents on both sides of the river, no one jumped into to save the men. Responding to pressure following the incident, Border Patrol agents have been receiving training on how to conduct water rescues. Agents are under no obligation to rescue border crossers from the river, but it is hoped that the new training will reduce the number of drowning deaths along the lower Rio Grande, where 18 people have died this year. The Mexican government is spending more than $1 million on equipping and training its agents to perform water rescues.
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An immigration inspector at Nogales has been accused of illegally searching US Customs databases for references to friends, including two who had criminal records. Searching such a database without an official reason to is in and of itself a crime. The inspector is the fifth based in Nogales to be charged with corrupt acts since January 1999.
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An INS agent in Los Angeles has pled guilty to charges to conspiring to move undocumented immigrants from detention and release them to smugglers. The smugglers would then hold them until family members paid the smuggling fee, between $1000 and $2000. Jesse Gardona, who had worked with the INS for 15 years, would receive $300 for each person. He faces up to five years in prison when he is sentenced later this year. < Back | Next > Disclaimer: This newsletter is provided as a public service and not intended to establish an attorney client relationship. Any reliance on information contained herein is taken at your own risk. | 
