 BORDER NEWS
Following the tragic death of a young African man who was trying to sneak into the US in the wheel well of a Greyhound bus, the US Border Patrol has begun airing a series of commercials designed to warn people of the dangers of crossing into the US illegally from Canada. It is widely believed that undocumented crossings across the Canadian border are easier than the Mexican border, and to the extent that it is less heavily guarded, it is. However, rivers, snow and other elements can make attempting the crossing a lethal prospect.
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According to the Border Patrol, an agent likely saved a group of migrants from being robbed and assaulted when he allowed them to enter the US. According to the Border Patrol, the agent saw a group of three men approaching the border, not attempting to stay out of view. The agent asked what was happening, and the men said they had just been robbed. Moments later, a second group of men began to approach, and the first group identified them as the robbers. As the second group neared, they began to make threats, which is when the agent called to the first group to enter the US. The agent then called Mexican authorities, and the second group fled.
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The INS is holding four stowaways who fled their ship when it was docked near New Orleans. The men, believed to be from the Dominican Republic, jumped from the Panamanian ship that they were traveling on last weekend. Authorities believe they boarded the ship in Santo Domingo. They will be held until an investigation is complete, and then will most likely be deported.
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The smuggler who led a group of undocumented immigrants through the mountains of southern California and into a snowstorm that killed two was recently sentenced to five years and three months in prison.
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The Board of Supervisors of San Diego County this week voted unanimously to bill the federal government for costs associated with undocumented immigration. The county is seeking million for incarceration and medical care spent in 1999. This amount was about half of the total spent by all 24 US counties that border Mexico. The federal government does provide some funds to counties for costs associated with the incarceration of undocumented immigrants, but it is not enough to cover the actual costs. For example, in 1999 San Diego County got million. The Board hopes that because of President Bush’s experiences as governor of a border state, he will be more receptive to their desires than past administrations.
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In two days, three separate traffic stops in Oklahoma uncovered 48 undocumented immigrants. All of them were turned over to the INS, which believes that they were traveling from Mexico to jobs in Tennessee.
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This week the Border Patrol rescued nearly 50 migrants who were trapped in snowy conditions in the mountains east of San Diego. Agents with Beta Grupo, Mexico’s border control force, also reported rescuing a large number of people in similar circumstances.
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