a. The summer heat is not the only danger illegal immigrants face when attempting to cross the US - Mexico border. Over the past four months, at least 612 immigrants have been picked up by the border patrol on or near Chocolate Mountain Aerial Gunnery Range near Yuma, Arizona. This range is the busiest Marine Corps aerial weapons training station in the US. While no injury has yet occurred, the increasing numbers of people crossing the border makes one likely. The danger is not only in weapons currently being launched, but also in the unexploded weapons that litter the ground that can be set off by high temperatures.

b. The border patrol picked up over 20 illegal immigrants on the shore and just off the coast of Florida. Eight Haitians were arrested in Delray Beach, who officials say arrived as part of an organized smuggling ring centered in the Bahamas.

c. Five Mexicans in Illinois were arrested on charges of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and it was then discovered that their green cards were fraudulent. The five had not known each other before coming to the US. They are currently being held awaiting deportation hearings.

d. So far this year over 800 illegal immigrants have been arrested in Iowa. Officials believe this high number is a result of Interstate 80, one of the main east-west routes through the nation, which runs through Iowa. Also, as patrols at the border are stepped up, smugglers bring more and more illegal immigrants into the interior of the country. Iowa law enforcement officials are stopping all vans that are speeding, missing headlights, or have passengers who are not wearing seat belts.

e. 21 Cubans were picked up in the waters off the coast of Key Largo, Florida. While authorities are not certain how they got so close to Florida, smuggling is suspected. Because the refugees did not land, they will be returned to Cuba after being interviewed by US immigration agents

f. Five illegal immigrants were arrested in West Virginia after a routine traffic stop. The illegal aliens were on their way from Virginia to Kentucky in search of employment.

g. A Canadian citizen, David Butler, has been accused of smuggling Cubans into Florida. He was stopped while driving through the Florida Keys with seven Cubans in his car. Authorities found $2000 in cash, charts of Cuba, and a global positioning device in the car. Butler, the seven Cubans found in his car and five other Cubans he is suspected of smuggling are being held at a detention center.

h. Crimes along the US - Canadian border are increasing. Over the past 10 years the number of illegal immigrants apprehended has doubled and the amount of marijuana confiscated has risen by 87%. Most disturbing is the rise in the number of international terrorists who obtain refugee status in Canada and then come to the US. Border patrol agent Ray Guarded says "Canada lets everybody in, and two days later they're coming down here." Although the situation on the northern border may be changing, there is not yet statistical evidence to support a shift in focus from the southern border.

i. Twenty Cuban refugees were picked up by a Mexican naval ship. Mexico, like the US, has an agreement with Cuba to return Cubans who do not face persecution. Because the 20 Cubans complained only of social and economic conditions, they are not eligible for asylum.

j. Noe Ronald, an immigration attorney, is in hot water. He is being sued by more than two dozen former clients for charging excessive fees, and he was recently charged in Georgia with trafficking counterfeit immigration papers.

k. Victims in a fatal truck and van crash in Missouri were illegal immigrants. Three people were killed when a tractor-trailer hit a van stopped in the driving lane on Interstate 70, and ten were taken to the hospital. Officials say they were agricultural workers on their way from Washington State to Kentucky. When everyone is released from the hospital a removal hearing will be held.

l. INS officials in Mesa, Arizona found 39 illegal aliens in a hotel room after police were summoned there on a domestic abuse complaint. Shawna Wagle called the police to file a complaint against her boyfriend, telling them he could be found in a hotel room. When the police arrived, it was full of undocumented Mexicans. Officials believe they were to be taken to Florida and North Carolina.

m. A Schenectady, New York marriage fraud ring has been put out of business with the conviction of a Peruvian national. Miguel Angel Jaime, along with his sister and two other relatives who have already been sentenced, would charge Peruvians $7000 for a fake marriage to a local resident, and give $1000 to $2000 to the local resident for their participation. No Americans have yet been charged.

n. A man who had already pleaded guilty to stealing more than $6 million from Kuwaiti lenders has now been jailed on charges of smuggling illegal immigrants. William Pace's boat was stopped after agents learned it was not flying the yellow flag required when any boat enters US waters from a foreign country. The immigrants, who boarded the boat in Nassau after flying from Havana, are currently being held at a detention center in Miami.

o. Eleven Cuban immigrants who were picked up off the coast of Key West last month have been returned to Cuba.

p. On July 14th, the Justice Department announced that there was no evidence of fraud or misconduct by the US Border Patrol in its portrayal of the success of Operation Gatekeeper, a controversial plan that tightened security along the border between California and Mexico. The allegations, first published two years ago, were that officials lied about the number of illegal immigrants apprehended to make it appear the number of people attempting the crossing was shrinking, as deterrence was a major goal of Operation Gatekeeper.

q. In July, officials discovered three "feeder" tunnels that led to a larger tunnel beneath the US - Mexico border. All of the newly discovered tunnels are on the American side of the border.

r. A large scale round up of illegal immigrants in Chandler, Arizona during the summer of 1997 has led to another lawsuit. With one suit filed last summer, shortly after the incident, a second was filed in July by 38 Hispanics, alleging police violations of their civil rights. Most claim they were stopped and even handcuffed because of their skin color or because they spoke Spanish. City officials refuse to discuss a settlement until the results of an investigation are released later this summer.

s. A five million dollar suit against the INS was filed on behalf of illegal immigrants injured when the truck they were being smuggled in overturned on a highway in California in 1996. The suit alleges that the border patrol engaged in a high-speed chase and failed to use their lights or sirens. The INS claims the driver of the truck lost control at high speed, and that the border patrol was over one half a mile away at the time of the accident.

t. The leader of Brothers to the Rescue, an anti-Castro group that searches the Florida Straits for fleeing Cubans has been subpoenaed to appear before a federal grand jury in connection with smuggling operations. The man, Jose Basulto, denies any involvement in smuggling and claims the subpoena is no more than government intimidation.

u. Mexican authorities are stepping up patrols in the region of Tabasco along the southern border between Mexico and Guatemala. Over the past two and one half years more than 23,000 people have been detained. The illegal immigrants detained in southern Mexico come from all over Central and South America, and even as far away as China.

v. A Border Patrol deportation officer was arrested in July for attempting to smuggle 15 illegal immigrants into the US. Fourteen of the aliens have been detained as government witnesses.

w. Four people are in custody in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on suspicion of involvement in an international illegal immigrant smuggling ring. The suspects were caught after the Coast Guard noticed the boat they were using beginning to sink. The 22 Haitians on the boat were repatriated.

x. As part of the Los Angeles County attempt to crack down on unethical immigration consultants, a man was sentenced to three years in prison for defrauding clients. Evidence showed he might have stolen from as many as 60 clients, mostly Chinese, Japanese and ethnic Armenians, by charging them up to $10,000 for promises of help with immigration matters.

y. A Washington, D.C. area lawyer was sentenced to 37 months in prison after being caught in a sting operation paying bribes to high-level INS officials. Over the course of the nine-month sting, the lawyer received over $260,000 from clients with which he bribed the INS. INS Washington District Director Warren A. Lewis applauded the sentence, saying "we vigorously pursue all aspects of immigration fraud and we will use all available resources to identify those who make a business of circumventing the legal immigration process by deception."