AZMEX UPDATE 24 APR 2016
PGR destroys 7 tons of drugs in Sonora
Details Published on Friday April 22, 2016,
Written by Editorial / El Diario
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=70357
The Attorney General's Office (PGR), Sonora State Delegation and the Secretariat of National Defense (SEDENA) were destroyed in Sonora,
seven tons 262 kilograms of dried marijuana plant,
just over 87 kg of methamphetamine,
1014 liters of liquid methamphetamine and other substances.
The Deputy Regional Control, Criminal Proceedings and Amparo (SCRPPA) instructed the destruction of narcotics, through its delegation in that entity, in accordance with the National Narcotics Incineration Calendar.
Yesterday, burning took place at the Radiomonitora Station of the City of Hermosillo, site where also were destroyed just over three kilograms of cocaine, 36 liters of liquid methamphetamine with diesel, 273 grams, 700 milligrams of cocaine sulphate and 32 marijuana plants.
The narcotics were related to 46 preliminary investigations initiated by crimes against health and taken in different raids in Sonora by the PGR, Ministry of the Navy of Mexico (Mexican Navy), Federal Police and Sonora State Investigation and Public Safety .
FINISH
Operating results of Blue Lightning
Details Published on Saturday April 23, 2016,
Written by Editorial / The Journal
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=70417
New suspects made available, other seized, eight vehicles and over three tons of confiscated marijuana, are part of the results obtained by the corporations that make up the "Operation Blue Lightning" and now patroling the streets of Nogales, as reported National Safety Commission (CNS).
Through an official statement, the federal agency said there have been also seized 122 cartridges, three magazines, 251,010 pesos, two guns and three radio communication equipment.
According to the federal authority and as a result of the coordination and exchange of binational information based on the agreements of border management within the framework of the Protocols of Border Violence (PVF), the need for conducting Operation Binacional "Blue Lightning" was shown .
end
Note: photo at link.
Federal Police catch three gunmen
Details Published on Saturday April 23, 2016,
Written by Editorial Staff
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=70394
Nogales.
They were aboard a stolen Cherokee, with an assault rifle with a telescopic sight.
Three subjects were arrested by members of the Federal Police in possession of an assault rifle, a handgun and more than 120 rounds of ammunition when they were driving aboard a van without license plates and reported as stolen in Sonora Nogales.
Carlos Gabriel Montes Lopez, 21 years old, Marcos Ibarra Patricio Orejel, 19 and Marco Rodriguez Francisco Cervantes, 24 who were made available to the appropriate authorities.
According to official reports PFP on travel surveillance detected a white Jeep Cherokee, model 2015, without license plates where three subjects were circulating at the intersection of Alvaro Obregon Avenue and General Abelardo L. Rodriguez, of this city.
in a routine officers located inside the car a long gun with 2 magazines, 59 rounds of ammunition, a handgun with a magazine and 63 cartridges and four cell phones, a portable radio transmitter and thousand US dollars.
In addition to corroborating the number of those items, officers were alerted that has been reported stolen in force, so that those mentioned were retained in place.
All three were sent along with weapons and the vehicle to the premises of the Federal Public Ministry, where investigations for the demarcation of responsibilities will be made.
END
Arizona Marshal - Gov. Pavlovich recognizes safety work
22 / Apr / 2016 - 8:14 pm
http://tribuna.com.mx/nota.php?n=15432
The US Marshal endorsed the actions of the governor, to recognize problems frankly and willingness to work with US authorities
By: Staff
Hermosillo, Sonora Sonora.- Between Arizona and there is a working relationship and besides sharing a border they collaborate in combating crime rates that affect both states, said US Marshal in the District of Arizona, David Gonzales, in a meeting with Pavlovich Claudia Arellano Governor.
The meeting to work bilaterally on the security issue also was raised by the Governor Claudia Pavlovich, that agents of the state and municipal police could receive training from American elements.
The US Marshal endorsed the actions of the Governor Claudia Pavlovich, to recognize existing problems frankly and willingness to work with authorities in the United States for a common benefit.
"It is a committed person and very honest and frank about problems and is easy to work with, makes everyone feel at ease and comfortable, and that makes a relationship work."
He said that although warnings about acts of crime in Mexico occurred, they also occur in Arizona and the rest of the neighboring country, so we must work together to ensure the safety of the citizens of the two states.
"Any place you go there are problems of crime and I think that sometimes the government reacts more about certain things, but we must also be cautious on both sides of the border because we also have problems with crime in Arizona and the United States and sometimes you have take it as a grain of salt because there are problems of crime in any country. "
end
Seized 7.4 million dollars of marijuana at Mariposa POE
Details Published on Saturday April 23, 2016,
Written by Rosalia Muñoz
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=70407
Nogales, Az.
Over 7 million in marijuana were seized by officers of Customs and Border Protection assigned to the Mariposa commercial POE, aboard a trailer.
Through a press release, the office of CBP (for its acronym in English) reported third largest seizure of marijuana in the history of the ports of entry in Arizona, on 21 April.
The statement said following a canine officers alert sent to a second inspection the driver of a truck 51 years intended to enter the United States through the aforementioned commercial POE with a cargo of watermelons.
In the inspection process they detected a total of 14 thousand 800 pounds of marijuana hidden packages made in plastic wrap between boxes watermelons, and whose value on the black market reaches 7.4 million.
The goods and the vehicle were seized, while the driver, who is a resident of Nogales, Sonora, was made available to the relevant authorities for investigation.
FINISH
Note: this one Might need a few grains of salt, Along With some tequila. Over the past few years, it is Estimated That Thousands have "disappeared", many to be "found" working for better paying employer.
197 MILITARY TRAIL TO LOSE
UNKNOWN LOCATION
24 / Apr / 2016
http://www.nuevodia.com.mx/Nota.aspx?p=12519
From 2012 to date, 197 members of the Mexican Army and Air Force have disappeared, according to the Secretariat of National Defense (SEDENA).
So far the current administration, the whereabouts of 183 soldiers, 13 corporals and a second sergeant is unknown. However, in the last administration, when Felipe Calderon declared war on drug trafficking, the number of missing in the military forces was 45 military, MVS News reported.
The average cites a report by the Department of Defense, dependence by Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda, which details it was in 2014 the year with the highest incidence since 130 soldiers were reported missing; in 2013 there were 67 cases; and so far in 2015 and 2016 there was no reporting of this crime.
In comparison, during the presidency of Calderón, 2011 it was the year with the highest incidence: 22 military unlocated were recorded; followed by 2012 with 15; and 2010 with eight. From 2006 to 2009 there were no reports.
In 2015, the Department of Defense reported that there is no clarity about what could happen to the soldiers registered under this condition and the cause of it is unknown. The truth is that elements were active, and there were no reports of missing from senior commanders.
end
Thursday, April 28, 2016
AZMEX EXTRA 24-4-16
AZMEX EXTRA 24 APR 2016
Note: from the good folks over at Borderland Beat.
The "gun guys" might want to take a good look at the photos at link. Even got a couple s/n.
Town in northern Chihuahua.
http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2016/04/tigers-weapons-and-cars-seized-to-la.html#more
Friday, April 22, 2016
Tigers, weapons, and cars seized from La Linea in Chihuahua
Wounded criminals, criminals killed by police, six detainees, powerful missile launchers, Barret rifles, thousands of bullets, more than 20 stolen vehicles, drugs, tactical gear, cash and exotic animals were seized by the General Office of Chihuahua during an operation in several points of the city of Nuevo Casas Grandes.
Under the operation "For The Safety Of Casas Grandes" agents of the Attorney General seized powerful weapons such as rocket launchers, Barret rifles, over a thousand 300 cartridges, lots of tactical equipment, vehicles reported as stolen including modern sports cars, drugs and exotic animals, in addition to the arrest of six subjects, a cell belonging to organized crime.
An investigation was carried out by elements of the State Police in order to provide security to the inhabitants of the area comprising the municipalities of Casas Grandes, Nuevo Casas Grandes, Ascension, Ignacio Zaragoza, Buenaventura and Janos.
The total number of items seized under this operation was:
• 19 stolen vehicles.
• 1 50-caliber Barret rifle, beige color, model M107A1, with serial number AE000334.
• 1 guided missile launcher, green.
• Automatic rifle 30 mm caliber black.
• 5 exotic animas rescued
• 4 military rifles Romanian 7.62 x 39 serial number 51-01999-99. And 7.62 x 39 mm
• 5 pistols
• 34 chargers
• 2 ammo packs
• One thousand 309 cartridges of different calibers.
• 11 tactical vests.
• 10 tactical military-style helmets
• 3 pairs of military boots
• 16 military uniforms of different colors.
• 2 green military ammo carriers
• 1 pair of knee pads
• 25 clear plastic wrappers of cocaine.
• 25 bundles of marijuana
• 1 communication equipment
• 1 pair of handcuffs
• $ 498, 400 pesos
• $ 1,475 dollars
On Friday April 15, police elements responded to a violent event that occurred between km 222 and 224 on a section known as "Las Emes" on the San Buenaventura to Ignacio Zaragoza road, and located three trucks with three dead people and one injured, all wore camouflage clothing. The injured person said to belong to the criminal group known as "La Linea".
On the same afternoon, State Police officers, were investigating the presence of armed civilians and upon reaching the section known as "El Bordo de la Vía", which connects Casas Grandes to Ignacio Zaragoza were attacked by criminals. They repel the aggression and shot dead one men carrying an AK-47 assault rifle, plus a .50 caliber Barrett rifle and .308 caliber cartridges.
On Saturday April 16, police responded to a call about armed men outside some apartments "Posada" located in Jesus Urueta and Mata Ortiz streets in colonia Centro, they located a stolen Blue GMC Yukon XL 2005 model, it was reported stolen since January 23, 2016. On the back, a missile launcher was located, with hundreds of rounds of ammunition, body armor, tactical camouflage uniforms, helmets and automatic weapons.
On Monday April 18, State Police arrested members of a criminal group, they were identified as Victor Manuel Hernandez Fernandez, Manuel Omar Sandoval Ramirez and Jose Torres Duenas, carrying assault rifles, handguns, 715 rounds of ammunition of different calibers, 25 wrappers with cocaine, camouflage uniforms and a stolen vehicle, in addition to $ 498, 400 pesos and $ 1,745 dollars.
On Tuesday morning, officers on patrol duty in Nuevo Casas Grandes, realized that a man ran on Plan Alemán street when he notice the police presence and enter the house number 4610, a farm that according to witnesses was uninhabited. On the premises police found cages with five wild big cats (tigers, lion, and bobcat), totally abandoned. The exotic animals were seized and turn to the competent authority, since exotic animals require specialized care and handling.
On the same day, at 6:30 pm on Tecnológico and 05 de Febrero streets, of Casas Grandes, Caesar Irving Cortez Renova was arrested, driving a Chevrolet Avanlache, stolen in Ciudad Juarez on January 17, 2016, police seized a 9 mm pistol, with five live rounds of ammunition, tactical equipment, 75 grams of marijuana and two photographs of Cesar Irving dressed in military style clothing and carrying a rocket launcher, which was secured days earlier by authorities.
In these same operations, police located in the municipality Casas Grandes five abandoned luxury cars reported as stolen in the U.SA, while on different streets of the town of Ascension, police recovered six automotive of recent model, stolen in different parts of the country, achieving the arrest of Miguel Ángel García Bañuelos and Cesar Trujillo Casas, who were in the process of dismantling a Honda Civic 2006 on Trigo and Álamo streets, with theft report of September 24, 2014, in Ciudad Juarez.
This article was translated from La Opcion.
end
La Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional recibe y destruye más de 75,000 armas de fuego que han sido canjeadas en todo el país.
http://www.gob.mx/sedena/prensa/la-secretaria-de-la-defensa-nacional-recibe-y-destruye-mas-de-75-000-armas-de-fuego-que-han-sido-canjeadas-en-todo-el-pais
Lomas de Sotelo, Ciudad de México, a 20 de marzo de 2016.-
La Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional informa que en coordinación con los Gobiernos de los Estados, iniciativa privada y sociedad en general, en el marco de la Ley Federal de Armas de Fuego y Explosivos y su Reglamento, y como parte de las acciones en beneficio de las familias mexicanas, ha retirado de los hogares durante la presente administración, más de 75,000 armas de fuego, canjeadas por la población civil.
Este importante resultado, se obtuvo gracias a la implementación de la "campaña de canje de armas de fuego" puesta en marcha en todo el territorio nacional, bajo la coordinación del Ejército y Fuerza Aérea Mexicanos, con el propósito de que la población civil entregue, voluntariamente, las armas de fuego, granadas y municiones que tienen en sus hogares, buscando así disminuir riesgos y violencia en el entorno de las familias mexicanas.
Destacan por su interés y nivel de participación la Ciudad de México, el Estado de México, Sinaloa, Coahuila y Nuevo León.
Se precisa que 75,009 armas, 2´043,916 cartuchos y 6,312 granadas, fueron destruidas de inmediato, evitando con esto la posibilidad de hacer daño a los hogares mexicanos, las cuales se suman a las 23,457 armas, 3´666,156 cartuchos y 2,836 granadas aseguradas durante la presente administración, en actividades de apoyo a la seguridad pública que realizan las Fuerzas Armadas de tierra y aire.
La Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional agradece y reconoce la confianza y participación activa de la sociedad y sus gobiernos, sumando esfuerzos para lograr y mantener un México en Paz.
END
Note: from the good folks over at Borderland Beat.
The "gun guys" might want to take a good look at the photos at link. Even got a couple s/n.
Town in northern Chihuahua.
http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2016/04/tigers-weapons-and-cars-seized-to-la.html#more
Friday, April 22, 2016
Tigers, weapons, and cars seized from La Linea in Chihuahua
Wounded criminals, criminals killed by police, six detainees, powerful missile launchers, Barret rifles, thousands of bullets, more than 20 stolen vehicles, drugs, tactical gear, cash and exotic animals were seized by the General Office of Chihuahua during an operation in several points of the city of Nuevo Casas Grandes.
Under the operation "For The Safety Of Casas Grandes" agents of the Attorney General seized powerful weapons such as rocket launchers, Barret rifles, over a thousand 300 cartridges, lots of tactical equipment, vehicles reported as stolen including modern sports cars, drugs and exotic animals, in addition to the arrest of six subjects, a cell belonging to organized crime.
An investigation was carried out by elements of the State Police in order to provide security to the inhabitants of the area comprising the municipalities of Casas Grandes, Nuevo Casas Grandes, Ascension, Ignacio Zaragoza, Buenaventura and Janos.
The total number of items seized under this operation was:
• 19 stolen vehicles.
• 1 50-caliber Barret rifle, beige color, model M107A1, with serial number AE000334.
• 1 guided missile launcher, green.
• Automatic rifle 30 mm caliber black.
• 5 exotic animas rescued
• 4 military rifles Romanian 7.62 x 39 serial number 51-01999-99. And 7.62 x 39 mm
• 5 pistols
• 34 chargers
• 2 ammo packs
• One thousand 309 cartridges of different calibers.
• 11 tactical vests.
• 10 tactical military-style helmets
• 3 pairs of military boots
• 16 military uniforms of different colors.
• 2 green military ammo carriers
• 1 pair of knee pads
• 25 clear plastic wrappers of cocaine.
• 25 bundles of marijuana
• 1 communication equipment
• 1 pair of handcuffs
• $ 498, 400 pesos
• $ 1,475 dollars
On Friday April 15, police elements responded to a violent event that occurred between km 222 and 224 on a section known as "Las Emes" on the San Buenaventura to Ignacio Zaragoza road, and located three trucks with three dead people and one injured, all wore camouflage clothing. The injured person said to belong to the criminal group known as "La Linea".
On the same afternoon, State Police officers, were investigating the presence of armed civilians and upon reaching the section known as "El Bordo de la Vía", which connects Casas Grandes to Ignacio Zaragoza were attacked by criminals. They repel the aggression and shot dead one men carrying an AK-47 assault rifle, plus a .50 caliber Barrett rifle and .308 caliber cartridges.
On Saturday April 16, police responded to a call about armed men outside some apartments "Posada" located in Jesus Urueta and Mata Ortiz streets in colonia Centro, they located a stolen Blue GMC Yukon XL 2005 model, it was reported stolen since January 23, 2016. On the back, a missile launcher was located, with hundreds of rounds of ammunition, body armor, tactical camouflage uniforms, helmets and automatic weapons.
On Monday April 18, State Police arrested members of a criminal group, they were identified as Victor Manuel Hernandez Fernandez, Manuel Omar Sandoval Ramirez and Jose Torres Duenas, carrying assault rifles, handguns, 715 rounds of ammunition of different calibers, 25 wrappers with cocaine, camouflage uniforms and a stolen vehicle, in addition to $ 498, 400 pesos and $ 1,745 dollars.
On Tuesday morning, officers on patrol duty in Nuevo Casas Grandes, realized that a man ran on Plan Alemán street when he notice the police presence and enter the house number 4610, a farm that according to witnesses was uninhabited. On the premises police found cages with five wild big cats (tigers, lion, and bobcat), totally abandoned. The exotic animals were seized and turn to the competent authority, since exotic animals require specialized care and handling.
On the same day, at 6:30 pm on Tecnológico and 05 de Febrero streets, of Casas Grandes, Caesar Irving Cortez Renova was arrested, driving a Chevrolet Avanlache, stolen in Ciudad Juarez on January 17, 2016, police seized a 9 mm pistol, with five live rounds of ammunition, tactical equipment, 75 grams of marijuana and two photographs of Cesar Irving dressed in military style clothing and carrying a rocket launcher, which was secured days earlier by authorities.
In these same operations, police located in the municipality Casas Grandes five abandoned luxury cars reported as stolen in the U.SA, while on different streets of the town of Ascension, police recovered six automotive of recent model, stolen in different parts of the country, achieving the arrest of Miguel Ángel García Bañuelos and Cesar Trujillo Casas, who were in the process of dismantling a Honda Civic 2006 on Trigo and Álamo streets, with theft report of September 24, 2014, in Ciudad Juarez.
This article was translated from La Opcion.
end
La Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional recibe y destruye más de 75,000 armas de fuego que han sido canjeadas en todo el país.
http://www.gob.mx/sedena/prensa/la-secretaria-de-la-defensa-nacional-recibe-y-destruye-mas-de-75-000-armas-de-fuego-que-han-sido-canjeadas-en-todo-el-pais
Lomas de Sotelo, Ciudad de México, a 20 de marzo de 2016.-
La Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional informa que en coordinación con los Gobiernos de los Estados, iniciativa privada y sociedad en general, en el marco de la Ley Federal de Armas de Fuego y Explosivos y su Reglamento, y como parte de las acciones en beneficio de las familias mexicanas, ha retirado de los hogares durante la presente administración, más de 75,000 armas de fuego, canjeadas por la población civil.
Este importante resultado, se obtuvo gracias a la implementación de la "campaña de canje de armas de fuego" puesta en marcha en todo el territorio nacional, bajo la coordinación del Ejército y Fuerza Aérea Mexicanos, con el propósito de que la población civil entregue, voluntariamente, las armas de fuego, granadas y municiones que tienen en sus hogares, buscando así disminuir riesgos y violencia en el entorno de las familias mexicanas.
Destacan por su interés y nivel de participación la Ciudad de México, el Estado de México, Sinaloa, Coahuila y Nuevo León.
Se precisa que 75,009 armas, 2´043,916 cartuchos y 6,312 granadas, fueron destruidas de inmediato, evitando con esto la posibilidad de hacer daño a los hogares mexicanos, las cuales se suman a las 23,457 armas, 3´666,156 cartuchos y 2,836 granadas aseguradas durante la presente administración, en actividades de apoyo a la seguridad pública que realizan las Fuerzas Armadas de tierra y aire.
La Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional agradece y reconoce la confianza y participación activa de la sociedad y sus gobiernos, sumando esfuerzos para lograr y mantener un México en Paz.
END
Thursday, April 21, 2016
AZMEX EXTRA 21-4-16
AZMEX EXTRA 21 APR 2016
Note: Actually TX. Anyone taking bets on if there will be any Fed. interest in this "gun crime"?
Agents discover 16 immigrants in Edinburg stash house
Posted: Tuesday, April 19, 2016 9:12 pm
STAFF REPORT
http://www.themonitor.com/news/local/agents-discover-immigrants-in-edinburg-stash-house/article_5db9d4ec-069d-11e6-bc71-a3e55ab6b562.html
A traffic stop Monday afternoon led to the discovery of 16 undocumented immigrants and a 20-gauge shotgun with a tampered serial number in Edinburg.
Border Patrol agents attempted to pull over a pair of men who were known smugglers, according to a press release from the office of the United States Border Patrol Rio Grande Valley Sector.
The two men fled the scene, but the driver was quickly apprehended. The men had initially fled near a house, which they were suspected of looking after, according to the release. Authorities obtained consent to search the house and found 16 undocumented immigrants hailing from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras and the shotgun.
The suspected smuggler, a Mexican national, was subsequently arrested.
end
Note: Actually TX. Anyone taking bets on if there will be any Fed. interest in this "gun crime"?
Agents discover 16 immigrants in Edinburg stash house
Posted: Tuesday, April 19, 2016 9:12 pm
STAFF REPORT
http://www.themonitor.com/news/local/agents-discover-immigrants-in-edinburg-stash-house/article_5db9d4ec-069d-11e6-bc71-a3e55ab6b562.html
A traffic stop Monday afternoon led to the discovery of 16 undocumented immigrants and a 20-gauge shotgun with a tampered serial number in Edinburg.
Border Patrol agents attempted to pull over a pair of men who were known smugglers, according to a press release from the office of the United States Border Patrol Rio Grande Valley Sector.
The two men fled the scene, but the driver was quickly apprehended. The men had initially fled near a house, which they were suspected of looking after, according to the release. Authorities obtained consent to search the house and found 16 undocumented immigrants hailing from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras and the shotgun.
The suspected smuggler, a Mexican national, was subsequently arrested.
end
AZMEX UPDATE 21-4-16
AZMEX UPDATE 21 APR 2016
Note: Even more trouble ahead? "under new orders to protect their shipments," Video at link.
Shootouts may signal change in smuggling tactics
Posted: Apr 19, 2016 8:59 PM MST
Updated: Apr 19, 2016 10:10 PM MST
By Morgan Loew
http://www.cbs5az.com/story/31768251/shootouts-may-signal-change-in-smuggling-tactics?autostart=true
CASA GRANDE, AZ (CBS5) -
Two shootouts in the desert south of Phoenix may indicate the Sinaloa Drug Cartel is ordering its smugglers to ramp up violence in an effort to protect drug shipments, according to multiple law enforcement sources who spoke to CBS 5 Investigates. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk to the media about the incidents.
The first shootout occurred on April 7 in the desert near Arizona City, according to a statement given to CBS 5 Investigates in response to questions about the incident. The statement says Border Patrol agents reported being fired upon as they attempted to intercept a group of suspected smugglers. The agents returned fire, arrested five suspects and seized nearly 500 pounds of marijuana.
Law enforcement sources tell CBS 5 Investigates the agents involved in the firefight were members of the elite BORTAC unit, which is used in drug interdiction operations. Nobody was injured in that shootout.
One week later, Casa Grande Police pulled over a vehicle on Interstate 8 near the Vekol Valley. Inside the vehicle was a man who stated that he had been shot and stabbed in the desert.
Law enforcement sources tell CBS 5 Investigates they believe the injured man was part of a so-called "rip crew." These are bandits who attempt to steal drug shipments from smugglers. In this instance, the sources say the smugglers opened fire on the rip crew, and a fight ensued. The wounded man was transported to a Phoenix-area hospital for treatment. There may have been another man injured in that incident.
The law enforcement sources who spoke to CBS 5 Investigates say it is unusual for smugglers to open fire on law enforcement officers in the desert. The DEA's 2015 National Drug Threat Assessment Summary states, "While operating in the United States, Mexican TCOs (Transnational Criminal Organizations) actively seek to maintain low profiles and avoid violent confrontations between rival TCOs or U.S. law enforcement."
But this year, confidential informants have told law enforcement that smugglers are under new orders to protect their shipments, rather than drop the drugs and run, according to multiple law enforcement sources.
Read more: http://www.cbs5az.com/story/31768251/shootouts-may-signal-change-in-smuggling-tactics#ixzz46UJ1PcRa
Note: As many know, especially those who have served in the middle east, rocks have a very long, lethal history.
UPDATE: Border Patrol agent shoots at man throwing rocks
Christina Myers
5:34 PM, Apr 20, 2016
http://www.kgun9.com/news/local-news/update-border-patrol-agent-shoots-at-man-throwing-rocks?autoplay=true
TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - The Chief Patrol Agent with the Tucson Sector of Border Patrol gave new details Wednesday about a shooting involving an agent.
Paul Beeson said the incident happened Tuesday just after 4p.m. in a remote area near Cowlic, AZ on the Tohono O'Odham reservation.
He said a number of agents were tracking a group of suspected drug smugglers. When the agents approached the suspects, one of them took off.
One of the agents followed the fleeing suspect, according to Beeson.
"The suspect stopped, picked up some rocks and began throwing them at the agent while making verbal threats," said Beeson. That is when he said the agent shot his gun at the suspect two times.
The suspect was not hit and fled once again, but he was caught and arrested after a brief chase.
The agents also arrested two other suspects. They found more than 240 pounds of marijuana with them.
The suspect who allegedly threw rocks at the agent was found to be a Honduran national who had already been deported once. He faces pending charges of Re-entry after Deportation, Narcotics Smuggling and possible Assault charges depending on the outcome of an investigation by the FBI.
The CBP Office of Professional Responsibility is doing a separate investigation into the agent's actions.
"There's various levels of force that agents are allowed to employ depending upon the circumstances and then of course their perception of what the threat is at the time. Agents go through extensive training at the Border Patrol Academy. There is extensive training that takes place throughout their career on a quarterly basis," said Beeson.
The agent's identity is not being released as the investigation is ongoing, but Beeson said he is a 12-year veteran who is on administrative leave pending the investigation results.
END
FBI, Customs to investigate shooting on Arizona-Mexico border
ASSOCIATED PRESS | April 20, 2016 @ 4:30 pm
http://ktar.com/story/1029855/fbi-customs-to-investigate-shooting-on-arizona-mexico-border/
PHOENIX — An 18-year-old suspected drug smuggler wasn't injured when a U.S. Border Patrol agent fired two shots at him during an encounter Tuesday in the southern Arizona desert.
The FBI and a Customs and Border Protection internal review board are investigating the shooting that took place on Tohono O'odham Nation land about 75 miles southwest of Tucson.
Tucson Sector spokesman Matthew Eisenhauer said the encounter unfolded shortly after 4 p.m., when agents who had been tracking a trio of smugglers carrying marijuana bundles attempted to make an arrest.
One of the smugglers, an 18-year-old Honduran who has been previously deported, ran away and was chased by an agent. The suspect stopped, picked up rocks from the ground and threw them at the agent while making verbal threats, Eisenhauer said.
The Border Patrol has not named the man or the agent. The agent is a 12-year veteran who has been placed on standard administrative leave.
Eisenhauer said rocks can seriously injure or even kill agents.
"Any type of projectile can be used to incapacitate or seriously maim or injure to even the point of death," he said.
The agent fired two shots at the man but missed. The man was arrested along with two other suspected smugglers.
Agents seized 247 pounds of marijuana following the arrest.
Border Patrol data released this month shows that use of force by agents and U.S. Customs and Border officers has been on the decline, dropping by about 26 percent from fiscal years 2014 to 2015.
Civil rights groups said agents resort to using force too quickly, especially in cases involving rock-throwers.
END
Note: no info yet on origin of the illegal immigrants, as legal immigrants seldom come in this way. Photos at link.
Trucker caught with 42 migrants in trailer
Nogales International 15 hrs ago (0)
http://www.nogalesinternational.com/news/trucker-caught-with-migrants-in-trailer/article_f46ee090-075a-11e6-95e8-d7f2083f1f8b.html
A group of 42 undocumented immigrants was found in a tractor-trailer.
A truck driver was arrested Monday after police found 42 undocumented immigrants hiding in the trailer he was hauling on Interstate 19.
Authorities said federal agents learned from an investigative source that undocumented immigrants were hiding in some brush north of Nogales. The Department of Homeland Security's Joint Intelligence Operations Center then coordinated with the U.S. Border Patrol, Air and Marine Operations, and the Arizona Department of Public Safety for air and ground support.
"From high above the scene, an aircrew from (Air and Marine Operations) reported seeing a group of people leaving the brush and climbing into the back of a tractor-trailer," the Joint Task Force-West said in a news release.
At approximately 9 p.m., DPS officers stopped the northbound tractor-trailer on Interstate 19 near Tubac and busted the driver and his passengers.
The driver, a U.S. citizen, and the immigrants were transferred to Border Patrol custody in Nogales.
"This collaborative law enforcement action was made possible because multiple agencies work together through the Joint Task Force-West Arizona," said Paul Beeson, JTF-W commander in Arizona. "These types of coordinated efforts leverage partner agency capabilities and jurisdictional authorities to dismantle criminal networks."
end
Report: Heroin overdose deaths spike in southern Arizona county
CLARISSA COOPER/CRONKITE NEWS |
April 20, 2016 @ 7:53 pm
http://ktar.com/story/1030016/report-heroin-overdose-deaths-spike-in-southern-arizona-county/
TUCSON, Ariz. — Nearly 100 addicts died of heroin overdoses in Pima County last year, making heroin the number one cause of death by a single drug.
Pima County's Chief Medical Examiner Gregory Hess said 379 people died of drug overdoses in 2015 – 93 of which were exclusively caused by heroin.
"We had 93 deaths attributed to heroin in 2015 and that's definitely an increase over previous years," Hess said.
Cronkite News reported last year that Pima County had an overdose rate almost twice as high as any other Arizona county, based on an analysis of public records from the 2009-2013 Arizona Hospital Discharge Data Set, gathered by the Arizona Department of Health Services' Bureau of Public Health Statistics.
The five ZIP codes that saw the most overdoses all were in metropolitan Tucson, the analysis showed.
"The number of deaths may wax and wane a little over time, but certainly heroin is the major killer that we see right now and it's dangerous," Hess said. "It's an equal opportunity drug, so to speak, it doesn't necessarily have to fit one demographic."
Overdose deaths also increased statewide the board from 2013 to 2014, according to the data from AZDHS.
In 2014, there were 494 deaths recorded from pharmaceutical opioids and benzodiazepines, a 16 percent increase from the previous year. Heroin-caused deaths jumped from 125 in 2013 to 180 in 2014, a 44 percent increase.
Recovering addict Dara Lawson of Phoenix is still witnessing the dangers of heroin 4-and-a-half years into sobriety. In a 2-month period, Lawson lost three friends to heroin overdoses.
"It's just heartbreaking because in my four-and-a-half years of sobriety, I can't even tell you how many friends I have lost," Lawson said. "Close friends, there's been four. Acquaintances, there's been over fifty."
Lawson, now a mother of two young boys, said it's not uncommon to open Facebook to see that another friend has passed away from a heroin overdose.
"It's terrifying and that fear does keep me from going back," Lawson said. "It's an epidemic and it's just taking over all the young people."
Erica Curry, spokeswoman for the Phoenix Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration, said heroin trafficking continues to increase in Arizona, with the presence of fentanyl, an opioid-based drug similar to heroin, being seen more often as an add-in to heroin.
"Fentanyl can be lethal to a person at 250 micrograms, which when you take a step back and consider that amount, it's equivalent to about two or three grains of table salt," Curry said. "Not a lot goes a long way."
She added, "those addicts who are getting their heroin laced with fentanyl are using what they would consider their regular dose, their normal amount that they use and because it's laced with fentanyl, it's that much more potent and they are overdosing."
Lawson started getting high with prescription pills. According to a 2014 survey by the American Society of Addiction Medicine, 94 percent of respondents, who were in treatment programs, said they chose heroin over pills because it was cheaper and easier to get.
"Undoubtedly, prescription drug abuse is the number one cause of the current heroin epidemic," Curry said. "Get rid of the prescription drugs, you'll get rid of the heroin addiction."
The Drug Enforcement Agency reported 80 to 90 percent of heroin addicts start with prescription drugs and then escalate to heroin.
"People need to respect prescription pills because when they don't realize prescription pills are still a drug, that's when things get out of control and then once they're addicted, they realize that heroin is cheaper and has a stronger effect and that's when they get into that," Lawson said.
Terry Bernier, a Sahuarita mother of three boys, witnessed her oldest son transition from pills to heroin. He has been struggling with a heroin addiction for about eight years.
"Through some skateboarding accidents, someone introduced him to some pain pills and then I think his next introduction was really heroin," Bernier said. "And it just hooked him, very quickly. Over time, you find spoons and foil and then you start researching and looking."
Her son is currently trying to get permission from his probation officer to get into a non-profit program in California called the Dream Center, which provides long-term addiction recovery help for free.
Bernier said she is partnering with the program to create the Southern Arizona Dream Center in the Tucson area.
"I think the longer time they have, the better opportunity they have for their brain to heal and to learn new habits," she said. "They don't just take you through a year program, but they take you further if you need. They take you through life skills, they teach you how to do budgeting and take care of money, they teach you how to have a job skill."
Bernier's son has been in and out of recovery programs and in and out of the family's quiet, gated community home, leading Bernier to become involved in advocating for better and longer care for recovering addicts. "You learn that you can't let them stay forever because you're enabling them," Bernier said. "However, when they knock on your door at midnight and have nowhere to go it's kind of hard not to let them in."
Lawson credits her parents' tough love and strict adherence to boundaries with saving the lives of her and her brother, who also is recovering addict.
"It happens in great neighborhoods. I grew up in an awesome area, a great school, I went to church three times a week and it hit my brother and I right then and there," Lawson said. "That's what got me sober, my mom and dad, they said you have two options – you either go to rehab or you leave. And I left, for a long time."
"I finally was broken enough to go back to my parents and say 'OK, I'm going to go get help.'"
Now, each funeral of a friend and overdose of an acquaintance is an ominous reminder of her time using heroin.
"I do remember all those people who I've lost whenever I do get the urge," she said. "And I think I don't want to be that person, I don't, you know, for my parent's sake, for my kid's sake, for my sake, because I live a beautiful life."
Curry said communities and families need to be more educated on the threat of prescription drugs. The DEA often partners with schools and community groups to help raise this awareness.
"Heroin addiction is terrible, it's destructive, it's life-changing, life-altering," Curry said. "We see a progression from the prescription. We see the progression to the heroin. Now we're seeing pockets of this fentanyl-laced heroin coming up and making itself widely known."
"This is going to be a continuous problem until we curb this onset of addiction," she added. "It starts in the home, it starts in our communities and we as a community, as parents, as educators, can make the difference and we really should. We've got to do this before it's too late."
end
Note: closing today's edition with this fun one.
Agents arrest 2 men convicted for sex crimes against children
http://www.douglasdispatch.com/news/agents-arrest-men-convicted-for-sex-crimes-against-children/article_d5576d8e-071a-11e6-8be5-b7c49ddaf9bb.html
23 hrs ago
Sergio Galaz-Coronado
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents recently arrested two male Mexican nationals previously convicted on charges relating to crimes against minors.
Agents first apprehended Sergio Galaz-Coronado, 38, outside of Douglas, on April 15. During a subsequent biometric-records check, agents found Galaz was arrested by the Maricopa County Sherriff's Office in 2001 for sexual conduct with a minor under the age of 15. He was subsequently sentenced to six months in jail and 10 years of probation before being deported.
The following day, agents assigned to the Casa Grande Border Patrol Station arrested Esteban Aparicio-Molina, 32, outside of Cowlic, Arizona. He had served 12 years in prison for multiple charges relating to inappropriate sexual contact with a child, including sexual assault.
Both subjects, classified as aggravated felons for their prior convictions, face additional criminal charges and stiffer penalties for their illegal re-entry into the United States. They remain in Border Patrol custody pending the outcome of these proceedings.
end
Note: Even more trouble ahead? "under new orders to protect their shipments," Video at link.
Shootouts may signal change in smuggling tactics
Posted: Apr 19, 2016 8:59 PM MST
Updated: Apr 19, 2016 10:10 PM MST
By Morgan Loew
http://www.cbs5az.com/story/31768251/shootouts-may-signal-change-in-smuggling-tactics?autostart=true
CASA GRANDE, AZ (CBS5) -
Two shootouts in the desert south of Phoenix may indicate the Sinaloa Drug Cartel is ordering its smugglers to ramp up violence in an effort to protect drug shipments, according to multiple law enforcement sources who spoke to CBS 5 Investigates. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk to the media about the incidents.
The first shootout occurred on April 7 in the desert near Arizona City, according to a statement given to CBS 5 Investigates in response to questions about the incident. The statement says Border Patrol agents reported being fired upon as they attempted to intercept a group of suspected smugglers. The agents returned fire, arrested five suspects and seized nearly 500 pounds of marijuana.
Law enforcement sources tell CBS 5 Investigates the agents involved in the firefight were members of the elite BORTAC unit, which is used in drug interdiction operations. Nobody was injured in that shootout.
One week later, Casa Grande Police pulled over a vehicle on Interstate 8 near the Vekol Valley. Inside the vehicle was a man who stated that he had been shot and stabbed in the desert.
Law enforcement sources tell CBS 5 Investigates they believe the injured man was part of a so-called "rip crew." These are bandits who attempt to steal drug shipments from smugglers. In this instance, the sources say the smugglers opened fire on the rip crew, and a fight ensued. The wounded man was transported to a Phoenix-area hospital for treatment. There may have been another man injured in that incident.
The law enforcement sources who spoke to CBS 5 Investigates say it is unusual for smugglers to open fire on law enforcement officers in the desert. The DEA's 2015 National Drug Threat Assessment Summary states, "While operating in the United States, Mexican TCOs (Transnational Criminal Organizations) actively seek to maintain low profiles and avoid violent confrontations between rival TCOs or U.S. law enforcement."
But this year, confidential informants have told law enforcement that smugglers are under new orders to protect their shipments, rather than drop the drugs and run, according to multiple law enforcement sources.
Read more: http://www.cbs5az.com/story/31768251/shootouts-may-signal-change-in-smuggling-tactics#ixzz46UJ1PcRa
Note: As many know, especially those who have served in the middle east, rocks have a very long, lethal history.
UPDATE: Border Patrol agent shoots at man throwing rocks
Christina Myers
5:34 PM, Apr 20, 2016
http://www.kgun9.com/news/local-news/update-border-patrol-agent-shoots-at-man-throwing-rocks?autoplay=true
TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - The Chief Patrol Agent with the Tucson Sector of Border Patrol gave new details Wednesday about a shooting involving an agent.
Paul Beeson said the incident happened Tuesday just after 4p.m. in a remote area near Cowlic, AZ on the Tohono O'Odham reservation.
He said a number of agents were tracking a group of suspected drug smugglers. When the agents approached the suspects, one of them took off.
One of the agents followed the fleeing suspect, according to Beeson.
"The suspect stopped, picked up some rocks and began throwing them at the agent while making verbal threats," said Beeson. That is when he said the agent shot his gun at the suspect two times.
The suspect was not hit and fled once again, but he was caught and arrested after a brief chase.
The agents also arrested two other suspects. They found more than 240 pounds of marijuana with them.
The suspect who allegedly threw rocks at the agent was found to be a Honduran national who had already been deported once. He faces pending charges of Re-entry after Deportation, Narcotics Smuggling and possible Assault charges depending on the outcome of an investigation by the FBI.
The CBP Office of Professional Responsibility is doing a separate investigation into the agent's actions.
"There's various levels of force that agents are allowed to employ depending upon the circumstances and then of course their perception of what the threat is at the time. Agents go through extensive training at the Border Patrol Academy. There is extensive training that takes place throughout their career on a quarterly basis," said Beeson.
The agent's identity is not being released as the investigation is ongoing, but Beeson said he is a 12-year veteran who is on administrative leave pending the investigation results.
END
FBI, Customs to investigate shooting on Arizona-Mexico border
ASSOCIATED PRESS | April 20, 2016 @ 4:30 pm
http://ktar.com/story/1029855/fbi-customs-to-investigate-shooting-on-arizona-mexico-border/
PHOENIX — An 18-year-old suspected drug smuggler wasn't injured when a U.S. Border Patrol agent fired two shots at him during an encounter Tuesday in the southern Arizona desert.
The FBI and a Customs and Border Protection internal review board are investigating the shooting that took place on Tohono O'odham Nation land about 75 miles southwest of Tucson.
Tucson Sector spokesman Matthew Eisenhauer said the encounter unfolded shortly after 4 p.m., when agents who had been tracking a trio of smugglers carrying marijuana bundles attempted to make an arrest.
One of the smugglers, an 18-year-old Honduran who has been previously deported, ran away and was chased by an agent. The suspect stopped, picked up rocks from the ground and threw them at the agent while making verbal threats, Eisenhauer said.
The Border Patrol has not named the man or the agent. The agent is a 12-year veteran who has been placed on standard administrative leave.
Eisenhauer said rocks can seriously injure or even kill agents.
"Any type of projectile can be used to incapacitate or seriously maim or injure to even the point of death," he said.
The agent fired two shots at the man but missed. The man was arrested along with two other suspected smugglers.
Agents seized 247 pounds of marijuana following the arrest.
Border Patrol data released this month shows that use of force by agents and U.S. Customs and Border officers has been on the decline, dropping by about 26 percent from fiscal years 2014 to 2015.
Civil rights groups said agents resort to using force too quickly, especially in cases involving rock-throwers.
END
Note: no info yet on origin of the illegal immigrants, as legal immigrants seldom come in this way. Photos at link.
Trucker caught with 42 migrants in trailer
Nogales International 15 hrs ago (0)
http://www.nogalesinternational.com/news/trucker-caught-with-migrants-in-trailer/article_f46ee090-075a-11e6-95e8-d7f2083f1f8b.html
A group of 42 undocumented immigrants was found in a tractor-trailer.
A truck driver was arrested Monday after police found 42 undocumented immigrants hiding in the trailer he was hauling on Interstate 19.
Authorities said federal agents learned from an investigative source that undocumented immigrants were hiding in some brush north of Nogales. The Department of Homeland Security's Joint Intelligence Operations Center then coordinated with the U.S. Border Patrol, Air and Marine Operations, and the Arizona Department of Public Safety for air and ground support.
"From high above the scene, an aircrew from (Air and Marine Operations) reported seeing a group of people leaving the brush and climbing into the back of a tractor-trailer," the Joint Task Force-West said in a news release.
At approximately 9 p.m., DPS officers stopped the northbound tractor-trailer on Interstate 19 near Tubac and busted the driver and his passengers.
The driver, a U.S. citizen, and the immigrants were transferred to Border Patrol custody in Nogales.
"This collaborative law enforcement action was made possible because multiple agencies work together through the Joint Task Force-West Arizona," said Paul Beeson, JTF-W commander in Arizona. "These types of coordinated efforts leverage partner agency capabilities and jurisdictional authorities to dismantle criminal networks."
end
Report: Heroin overdose deaths spike in southern Arizona county
CLARISSA COOPER/CRONKITE NEWS |
April 20, 2016 @ 7:53 pm
http://ktar.com/story/1030016/report-heroin-overdose-deaths-spike-in-southern-arizona-county/
TUCSON, Ariz. — Nearly 100 addicts died of heroin overdoses in Pima County last year, making heroin the number one cause of death by a single drug.
Pima County's Chief Medical Examiner Gregory Hess said 379 people died of drug overdoses in 2015 – 93 of which were exclusively caused by heroin.
"We had 93 deaths attributed to heroin in 2015 and that's definitely an increase over previous years," Hess said.
Cronkite News reported last year that Pima County had an overdose rate almost twice as high as any other Arizona county, based on an analysis of public records from the 2009-2013 Arizona Hospital Discharge Data Set, gathered by the Arizona Department of Health Services' Bureau of Public Health Statistics.
The five ZIP codes that saw the most overdoses all were in metropolitan Tucson, the analysis showed.
"The number of deaths may wax and wane a little over time, but certainly heroin is the major killer that we see right now and it's dangerous," Hess said. "It's an equal opportunity drug, so to speak, it doesn't necessarily have to fit one demographic."
Overdose deaths also increased statewide the board from 2013 to 2014, according to the data from AZDHS.
In 2014, there were 494 deaths recorded from pharmaceutical opioids and benzodiazepines, a 16 percent increase from the previous year. Heroin-caused deaths jumped from 125 in 2013 to 180 in 2014, a 44 percent increase.
Recovering addict Dara Lawson of Phoenix is still witnessing the dangers of heroin 4-and-a-half years into sobriety. In a 2-month period, Lawson lost three friends to heroin overdoses.
"It's just heartbreaking because in my four-and-a-half years of sobriety, I can't even tell you how many friends I have lost," Lawson said. "Close friends, there's been four. Acquaintances, there's been over fifty."
Lawson, now a mother of two young boys, said it's not uncommon to open Facebook to see that another friend has passed away from a heroin overdose.
"It's terrifying and that fear does keep me from going back," Lawson said. "It's an epidemic and it's just taking over all the young people."
Erica Curry, spokeswoman for the Phoenix Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration, said heroin trafficking continues to increase in Arizona, with the presence of fentanyl, an opioid-based drug similar to heroin, being seen more often as an add-in to heroin.
"Fentanyl can be lethal to a person at 250 micrograms, which when you take a step back and consider that amount, it's equivalent to about two or three grains of table salt," Curry said. "Not a lot goes a long way."
She added, "those addicts who are getting their heroin laced with fentanyl are using what they would consider their regular dose, their normal amount that they use and because it's laced with fentanyl, it's that much more potent and they are overdosing."
Lawson started getting high with prescription pills. According to a 2014 survey by the American Society of Addiction Medicine, 94 percent of respondents, who were in treatment programs, said they chose heroin over pills because it was cheaper and easier to get.
"Undoubtedly, prescription drug abuse is the number one cause of the current heroin epidemic," Curry said. "Get rid of the prescription drugs, you'll get rid of the heroin addiction."
The Drug Enforcement Agency reported 80 to 90 percent of heroin addicts start with prescription drugs and then escalate to heroin.
"People need to respect prescription pills because when they don't realize prescription pills are still a drug, that's when things get out of control and then once they're addicted, they realize that heroin is cheaper and has a stronger effect and that's when they get into that," Lawson said.
Terry Bernier, a Sahuarita mother of three boys, witnessed her oldest son transition from pills to heroin. He has been struggling with a heroin addiction for about eight years.
"Through some skateboarding accidents, someone introduced him to some pain pills and then I think his next introduction was really heroin," Bernier said. "And it just hooked him, very quickly. Over time, you find spoons and foil and then you start researching and looking."
Her son is currently trying to get permission from his probation officer to get into a non-profit program in California called the Dream Center, which provides long-term addiction recovery help for free.
Bernier said she is partnering with the program to create the Southern Arizona Dream Center in the Tucson area.
"I think the longer time they have, the better opportunity they have for their brain to heal and to learn new habits," she said. "They don't just take you through a year program, but they take you further if you need. They take you through life skills, they teach you how to do budgeting and take care of money, they teach you how to have a job skill."
Bernier's son has been in and out of recovery programs and in and out of the family's quiet, gated community home, leading Bernier to become involved in advocating for better and longer care for recovering addicts. "You learn that you can't let them stay forever because you're enabling them," Bernier said. "However, when they knock on your door at midnight and have nowhere to go it's kind of hard not to let them in."
Lawson credits her parents' tough love and strict adherence to boundaries with saving the lives of her and her brother, who also is recovering addict.
"It happens in great neighborhoods. I grew up in an awesome area, a great school, I went to church three times a week and it hit my brother and I right then and there," Lawson said. "That's what got me sober, my mom and dad, they said you have two options – you either go to rehab or you leave. And I left, for a long time."
"I finally was broken enough to go back to my parents and say 'OK, I'm going to go get help.'"
Now, each funeral of a friend and overdose of an acquaintance is an ominous reminder of her time using heroin.
"I do remember all those people who I've lost whenever I do get the urge," she said. "And I think I don't want to be that person, I don't, you know, for my parent's sake, for my kid's sake, for my sake, because I live a beautiful life."
Curry said communities and families need to be more educated on the threat of prescription drugs. The DEA often partners with schools and community groups to help raise this awareness.
"Heroin addiction is terrible, it's destructive, it's life-changing, life-altering," Curry said. "We see a progression from the prescription. We see the progression to the heroin. Now we're seeing pockets of this fentanyl-laced heroin coming up and making itself widely known."
"This is going to be a continuous problem until we curb this onset of addiction," she added. "It starts in the home, it starts in our communities and we as a community, as parents, as educators, can make the difference and we really should. We've got to do this before it's too late."
end
Note: closing today's edition with this fun one.
Agents arrest 2 men convicted for sex crimes against children
http://www.douglasdispatch.com/news/agents-arrest-men-convicted-for-sex-crimes-against-children/article_d5576d8e-071a-11e6-8be5-b7c49ddaf9bb.html
23 hrs ago
Sergio Galaz-Coronado
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents recently arrested two male Mexican nationals previously convicted on charges relating to crimes against minors.
Agents first apprehended Sergio Galaz-Coronado, 38, outside of Douglas, on April 15. During a subsequent biometric-records check, agents found Galaz was arrested by the Maricopa County Sherriff's Office in 2001 for sexual conduct with a minor under the age of 15. He was subsequently sentenced to six months in jail and 10 years of probation before being deported.
The following day, agents assigned to the Casa Grande Border Patrol Station arrested Esteban Aparicio-Molina, 32, outside of Cowlic, Arizona. He had served 12 years in prison for multiple charges relating to inappropriate sexual contact with a child, including sexual assault.
Both subjects, classified as aggravated felons for their prior convictions, face additional criminal charges and stiffer penalties for their illegal re-entry into the United States. They remain in Border Patrol custody pending the outcome of these proceedings.
end
Wednesday, April 20, 2016
AZMEX UPDATE 19-4-16
AZMEX UPDATE 19 APR 2016
PCSO arrests suspected drug smuggler, 4 bundles of pot seized
Posted: Apr 19, 2016 9:08 AM MST
Updated: Apr 19, 2016 9:08 AM MST
By Phil Benson
http://www.azfamily.com/story/31762655/pcso-arrests-suspected-drug-smuggler-4-bundles-of-pot-seized?autostart=true
FLORENCE, AZ (KPHO/KTVK) -
A suspected drug smuggler was arrested and 167 pounds of marijuana seized during a traffic stop in Pinal County Saturday night.
Four other smugglers dressed in camouflaged clothing ran from the vehicle and got away.
A sheriff's deputy stopped the pickup at 7:55 p.m. after seeing the truck run a stop sign and operate up to 15 mph over the speed limit on Highway 84 northbound from Interstate 8.
"The driver that was arrested told a detective that he picked up the four smugglers and marijuana on Interstate 8 just prior to being stopped by the deputy," Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu said.
There were no backup deputies available to look for the occupants who fled, Babeu said.
"The deputy found four large bundles of marijuana in the bed of the truck totaling 167 pounds," Babeu said.
The driver, Odiel Alvarez-Moreno, 21, of Phoenix, stayed with the vehicle and was taken into custody.
He is being held in the Pinal County Jail awaiting felony charges for transporting marijuana and possession of marijuana for sale.
Babeu said the pot is believed to have been smuggled into the county from Mexico.
END
Nogales traffic stop leads to discovery of 600 pounds of marijuana
Monday, April 18th 2016, 11:17 am MST
Monday, April 18th 2016, 12:49 pm MST
By John Ames, Digital Content Executive Producer
http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/story/31753342/nogales-traffic-stop-leads-to-discovery-of-600-pounds-of-marijuana
NOGALES, AZ (Tucson News Now) -
Police in Nogales arrested an 18-year-old man after more than 600 pounds of marijuana were discovered in the car he was driving on Saturday, April 16.
According to a news release from the Nogales Police Department, the man from Nogales, Sonora, Mexico tried to flee on foot after NDP officers assisting Homeland Security Investigations pulled over the station wagon he was driving on Mastick Way near the Mariposa Clinic.
The man was taken into custody without incident at the Fast Trip Convenience Store.
END
Note: As always, it is about illegal immigrants. Legal immigrants don't have the problems.
Immigrant advocates in Tucson rally in support of DAPA
Monday, April 18th 2016, 3:36 pm MST
Tuesday, April 19th 2016, 10:58 am MST
By Barbara Grijalva, Reporter
http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/story/31755770/tucson-immigrant-advocates-rally-in-support-of-dapa
TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) -
Tucson immigrants rights groups are hoping the United States Supreme Court rules in favor of the Obama Administration's actions on immigration.
Millions of undocumented immigrants are awaiting the court's decision, including thousands here in Arizona.
On Monday, April 18, the eight justices heard 90 minutes of arguments on the deferred deportation programs - Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA).
Chief Justice John Roberts asked questions suggesting he could side with the president if there is a small change in the proposed programs that could protect 4.5 million undocumented immigrants from deportation and make them eligible to work in the U.S.
Arizona is among 26 states suing to stop those programs. A decision is expected by June.
Immigrant advocates gathered at Southside Presbyterian Church, long a supporter of immigrants in the United States.
The church hosted an event that coincided with other similar events across the country in support of President Obama's actions to shield certain undocumented immigrants from deportation.
Supporters called it a "moral imperative" that families be kept together through DAPA. These are families in which the children are U.S. citizens or permanent residents.
A Tucson woman who said she came to the United States 16 years ago in search of a better life said her greatest fear is that she will be deported and be separated from her son who was born in the U.S.
"I don't want that to ever happen. I don't think any mother would want anything like that to happen. It's very hard," Karla Neyoy said through a translator.
"It is sinful, just plain sinful and wrong to advance policies and rhetoric that criminalize fathers, that persecute mothers and that traumatizes children. So today we want to send a strong message to the Supreme Court to uphold the president's actions and to protect millions from deportation," Southside Presbyterian Church Pastor Alison Harrington said.
If the high court sides with the Obama Administration, DAPA would protect an estimated 4.5 million people from deportation.
If the court decides against the administration, DAPA does not go into effect.
The fate of President Obama's immigration programs could rest on two words that are in the executive orders, "Lawful Presence."
Arizona and the other states suing the administration say this phrase gives the immigrants affected by these programs more rights than federal law allows.
The administration, however, is arguing there's an easy fix. Just cross out the words "Lawful Presence." The president's lawyers said you can get rid of these words and still keep the programs.
The states say it is not that simple. And there's another issue to consider.
The court still has only eight justices after the death of Antonin Scalia. That raises the possibility of a tie vote, meaning a lower court ban on the president's plan would remain in place.
The key justices to watch are Chief Justice John Roberts, and Justice Anthony Kennedy who have been swing votes in the past.
One or both of them could side with the court's liberal wing, meaning the president's programs would go through.
Again, a decision is expected by June.
end
MCSO records one of Arizona's largest marijuana manufacturing busts in history
KTAR.COM | April 19, 2016 @ 5:58 pm
http://ktar.com/story/1027845/mcso-records-one-of-arizonas-largest-marijuana-manufacturing-busts-in-history/
Some of the seized marijuana plants are shown. (Maricopa County Sheriff's Office Photo)
PHOENIX — One of the largest illegal marijuana manufacturing rings in Arizona history has been dismantled, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office said Tuesday.
In a release, the agency said the operation — which began in 2013 — was disguised as a medical marijuana growing service. However, unlike a dispensary, it allegedly did not conduct background checks, pay any associated taxes or fees and did not adhere to other legal restrictions.
"This is a major operation making millions of dollars," Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said in the release.
MCSO estimated the operation near 40th and Washington streets had between 600 and 1,000 marijuana plants. It would produce about 2,400 pounds of pot per year — plus additional hashish — and brought in about $7 million annually.
The agency said odors from the operation could be smelled as far away as 500 yards.
In addition to the Phoenix site, search warrants were also served in Scottsdale, Fountain Hills and other places in Phoenix. Overall, 20 weapons, numerous narcotics and more than $100,000 in cash were seized.
Charges in the case of forthcoming, but the sheriff's office said five people have been arrested. It is believed as many as 25 people were involved.
The bust was carried out by several agencies, including several Valley police departments and the Drug Enforcement Agency.
end
PCSO arrests suspected drug smuggler, 4 bundles of pot seized
Posted: Apr 19, 2016 9:08 AM MST
Updated: Apr 19, 2016 9:08 AM MST
By Phil Benson
http://www.azfamily.com/story/31762655/pcso-arrests-suspected-drug-smuggler-4-bundles-of-pot-seized?autostart=true
FLORENCE, AZ (KPHO/KTVK) -
A suspected drug smuggler was arrested and 167 pounds of marijuana seized during a traffic stop in Pinal County Saturday night.
Four other smugglers dressed in camouflaged clothing ran from the vehicle and got away.
A sheriff's deputy stopped the pickup at 7:55 p.m. after seeing the truck run a stop sign and operate up to 15 mph over the speed limit on Highway 84 northbound from Interstate 8.
"The driver that was arrested told a detective that he picked up the four smugglers and marijuana on Interstate 8 just prior to being stopped by the deputy," Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu said.
There were no backup deputies available to look for the occupants who fled, Babeu said.
"The deputy found four large bundles of marijuana in the bed of the truck totaling 167 pounds," Babeu said.
The driver, Odiel Alvarez-Moreno, 21, of Phoenix, stayed with the vehicle and was taken into custody.
He is being held in the Pinal County Jail awaiting felony charges for transporting marijuana and possession of marijuana for sale.
Babeu said the pot is believed to have been smuggled into the county from Mexico.
END
Nogales traffic stop leads to discovery of 600 pounds of marijuana
Monday, April 18th 2016, 11:17 am MST
Monday, April 18th 2016, 12:49 pm MST
By John Ames, Digital Content Executive Producer
http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/story/31753342/nogales-traffic-stop-leads-to-discovery-of-600-pounds-of-marijuana
NOGALES, AZ (Tucson News Now) -
Police in Nogales arrested an 18-year-old man after more than 600 pounds of marijuana were discovered in the car he was driving on Saturday, April 16.
According to a news release from the Nogales Police Department, the man from Nogales, Sonora, Mexico tried to flee on foot after NDP officers assisting Homeland Security Investigations pulled over the station wagon he was driving on Mastick Way near the Mariposa Clinic.
The man was taken into custody without incident at the Fast Trip Convenience Store.
END
Note: As always, it is about illegal immigrants. Legal immigrants don't have the problems.
Immigrant advocates in Tucson rally in support of DAPA
Monday, April 18th 2016, 3:36 pm MST
Tuesday, April 19th 2016, 10:58 am MST
By Barbara Grijalva, Reporter
http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/story/31755770/tucson-immigrant-advocates-rally-in-support-of-dapa
TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) -
Tucson immigrants rights groups are hoping the United States Supreme Court rules in favor of the Obama Administration's actions on immigration.
Millions of undocumented immigrants are awaiting the court's decision, including thousands here in Arizona.
On Monday, April 18, the eight justices heard 90 minutes of arguments on the deferred deportation programs - Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA).
Chief Justice John Roberts asked questions suggesting he could side with the president if there is a small change in the proposed programs that could protect 4.5 million undocumented immigrants from deportation and make them eligible to work in the U.S.
Arizona is among 26 states suing to stop those programs. A decision is expected by June.
Immigrant advocates gathered at Southside Presbyterian Church, long a supporter of immigrants in the United States.
The church hosted an event that coincided with other similar events across the country in support of President Obama's actions to shield certain undocumented immigrants from deportation.
Supporters called it a "moral imperative" that families be kept together through DAPA. These are families in which the children are U.S. citizens or permanent residents.
A Tucson woman who said she came to the United States 16 years ago in search of a better life said her greatest fear is that she will be deported and be separated from her son who was born in the U.S.
"I don't want that to ever happen. I don't think any mother would want anything like that to happen. It's very hard," Karla Neyoy said through a translator.
"It is sinful, just plain sinful and wrong to advance policies and rhetoric that criminalize fathers, that persecute mothers and that traumatizes children. So today we want to send a strong message to the Supreme Court to uphold the president's actions and to protect millions from deportation," Southside Presbyterian Church Pastor Alison Harrington said.
If the high court sides with the Obama Administration, DAPA would protect an estimated 4.5 million people from deportation.
If the court decides against the administration, DAPA does not go into effect.
The fate of President Obama's immigration programs could rest on two words that are in the executive orders, "Lawful Presence."
Arizona and the other states suing the administration say this phrase gives the immigrants affected by these programs more rights than federal law allows.
The administration, however, is arguing there's an easy fix. Just cross out the words "Lawful Presence." The president's lawyers said you can get rid of these words and still keep the programs.
The states say it is not that simple. And there's another issue to consider.
The court still has only eight justices after the death of Antonin Scalia. That raises the possibility of a tie vote, meaning a lower court ban on the president's plan would remain in place.
The key justices to watch are Chief Justice John Roberts, and Justice Anthony Kennedy who have been swing votes in the past.
One or both of them could side with the court's liberal wing, meaning the president's programs would go through.
Again, a decision is expected by June.
end
MCSO records one of Arizona's largest marijuana manufacturing busts in history
KTAR.COM | April 19, 2016 @ 5:58 pm
http://ktar.com/story/1027845/mcso-records-one-of-arizonas-largest-marijuana-manufacturing-busts-in-history/
Some of the seized marijuana plants are shown. (Maricopa County Sheriff's Office Photo)
PHOENIX — One of the largest illegal marijuana manufacturing rings in Arizona history has been dismantled, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office said Tuesday.
In a release, the agency said the operation — which began in 2013 — was disguised as a medical marijuana growing service. However, unlike a dispensary, it allegedly did not conduct background checks, pay any associated taxes or fees and did not adhere to other legal restrictions.
"This is a major operation making millions of dollars," Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said in the release.
MCSO estimated the operation near 40th and Washington streets had between 600 and 1,000 marijuana plants. It would produce about 2,400 pounds of pot per year — plus additional hashish — and brought in about $7 million annually.
The agency said odors from the operation could be smelled as far away as 500 yards.
In addition to the Phoenix site, search warrants were also served in Scottsdale, Fountain Hills and other places in Phoenix. Overall, 20 weapons, numerous narcotics and more than $100,000 in cash were seized.
Charges in the case of forthcoming, but the sheriff's office said five people have been arrested. It is believed as many as 25 people were involved.
The bust was carried out by several agencies, including several Valley police departments and the Drug Enforcement Agency.
end
Thursday, April 14, 2016
AZMEX F&F EXTRA 14-4-16
AZMEX F&F EXTRA 14 APR 2016
Update on the "document dump". None of those responsible have yet to face justice.
s
Oversight Chairman Discusses Fast and Furious Executive Privilege Documents Released By Obama
Katie Pavlich | Apr 14, 2016
http://www.townhallmail.com/ylcrswzfrrbnsfrfnfsqznpggvnggfvzccqwtsbvflbcbb_xcsrcgrjps.html?a=&b=
Last week President Obama finally turned over thousands of Fast and Furious documents to the House Oversight Committee after his 2012 executive privilege claim protecting Attorney General Eric Holder was struck down by a federal judge. As a refresher:
Just moments before Attorney General Eric Holder was voted in contempt of Congress by Republicans and Democrats in June 2012 , President Obama asserted executive privilege over thousands of documents related to Operation Fast and Furious. Holder was held in contempt for stonewalling and failing to turn over the documents to the House Oversight Committee. Obama granted the executive privilege request despite claiming to have no knowledge about Operation Fast and Furious when it was active from 2009-2010.
Now, some details about the documents are beginning to emerge, showing the Department of Justice only partially responded to subpoenas from Congress about the gun running operation.
"We had to pry these out of the administration. It was Senator Grassley who actually made the first inquiry," House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz said during an interview with Special Report Wednesday. "Here in writing they [DOJ] are not complying with the law. They are breaking the law by telling us they're only going to provide a couple of the documents."
"When you have a duly issued subpoena, you must comply with it," Chaffetz continued. "There was a concerted effort here to make sure the Congress never saw the light of day on these documents. They still owe us more."
Operation Fast and Furious was an ATF and Department of Justice program that purposely allowed the sale and trafficking of thousands of weapons to violent Mexican drug cartels. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed by Mexican bandits in December 2010 and guns from the operation were found at the murder scene. When Sinaloa cartel leader El Chapo Guzman was captured last year, guns from the operation, including a .50 caliber rifle that was used to shoot at a police helicopter, were found in his hideout. Hundreds of Mexican citizens have been killed as a result of the program and thousands of guns are still missing and being used to carry out violent crimes in Mexico and potentially in the United States.
end
Justice Dept. gives Congress documents on Fast and Furious
Eric Tucker, Associated Press Updated 10:25 pm, Friday, April 8, 2016
http://www.chron.com/news/texas/article/Justice-Dept-gives-Congress-documents-on-Fast-7237582.php
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department said Friday that it had given to Congress additional documents related to the botched gun-smuggling operation known as Fast and Furious as part of a years-long court dispute.
The Obama administration had for the last four years refused to provide the records to House Republicans, invoking a claim of executive privilege.
But a federal judge in January mostly turned aside that argument, saying a blanket assertion of executive privilege was inappropriate since the Justice Department had already disclosed through other channels much of the information it had sought to withhold. The judge also said the privilege was a valid basis for the department to withhold certain documents.
In a letter Friday, the Justice Department said it was moving to end the legal dispute with the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform by providing the documents even though it continued to disagree with the order from Judge Amy Berman Jackson.
"In addition, in light of the passage of time and other considerations, such as the department's interest in moving past this litigation and building upon our cooperative relationship with the committee and other congressional committees, the department has decided that it is not in the executive branch's interest to continue litigating this issue at this time," Assistant Attorney General Peter Kadzik, head of the Justice Department's Office of Legislative Affairs, wrote in a letter to committee chairman Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican.
House Republicans sued in 2012 to obtain thousands of emails related to the failed effort by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to track guns across the Southwest border. Under that operation, ATF allowed gunrunners to buy weapons in hopes of tracking them and disrupting Mexican gun-smuggling rings.
Revelations of the operation created a political firestorm and set off a documents dispute between then-Attorney General Eric Holder and Congress that resulted in Holder being held in contempt of Congress.
The Justice Department had already produced tens of thousands of pages of documents, but Congress continued to seek records that the department argued it was entitled to withhold.
The department said that, in producing the documents Friday, it had completed its obligations under the court order.
Chaffetz said in a statement that while the department had turned over "some of the subpoenaed documents," the committee remains entitled to "the full range of documents for which it brought this lawsuit." He said the committee was appealing in hopes of getting additional documents.
end
Update on the "document dump". None of those responsible have yet to face justice.
s
Oversight Chairman Discusses Fast and Furious Executive Privilege Documents Released By Obama
Katie Pavlich | Apr 14, 2016
http://www.townhallmail.com/ylcrswzfrrbnsfrfnfsqznpggvnggfvzccqwtsbvflbcbb_xcsrcgrjps.html?a=&b=
Last week President Obama finally turned over thousands of Fast and Furious documents to the House Oversight Committee after his 2012 executive privilege claim protecting Attorney General Eric Holder was struck down by a federal judge. As a refresher:
Just moments before Attorney General Eric Holder was voted in contempt of Congress by Republicans and Democrats in June 2012 , President Obama asserted executive privilege over thousands of documents related to Operation Fast and Furious. Holder was held in contempt for stonewalling and failing to turn over the documents to the House Oversight Committee. Obama granted the executive privilege request despite claiming to have no knowledge about Operation Fast and Furious when it was active from 2009-2010.
Now, some details about the documents are beginning to emerge, showing the Department of Justice only partially responded to subpoenas from Congress about the gun running operation.
"We had to pry these out of the administration. It was Senator Grassley who actually made the first inquiry," House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz said during an interview with Special Report Wednesday. "Here in writing they [DOJ] are not complying with the law. They are breaking the law by telling us they're only going to provide a couple of the documents."
"When you have a duly issued subpoena, you must comply with it," Chaffetz continued. "There was a concerted effort here to make sure the Congress never saw the light of day on these documents. They still owe us more."
Operation Fast and Furious was an ATF and Department of Justice program that purposely allowed the sale and trafficking of thousands of weapons to violent Mexican drug cartels. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed by Mexican bandits in December 2010 and guns from the operation were found at the murder scene. When Sinaloa cartel leader El Chapo Guzman was captured last year, guns from the operation, including a .50 caliber rifle that was used to shoot at a police helicopter, were found in his hideout. Hundreds of Mexican citizens have been killed as a result of the program and thousands of guns are still missing and being used to carry out violent crimes in Mexico and potentially in the United States.
end
Justice Dept. gives Congress documents on Fast and Furious
Eric Tucker, Associated Press Updated 10:25 pm, Friday, April 8, 2016
http://www.chron.com/news/texas/article/Justice-Dept-gives-Congress-documents-on-Fast-7237582.php
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department said Friday that it had given to Congress additional documents related to the botched gun-smuggling operation known as Fast and Furious as part of a years-long court dispute.
The Obama administration had for the last four years refused to provide the records to House Republicans, invoking a claim of executive privilege.
But a federal judge in January mostly turned aside that argument, saying a blanket assertion of executive privilege was inappropriate since the Justice Department had already disclosed through other channels much of the information it had sought to withhold. The judge also said the privilege was a valid basis for the department to withhold certain documents.
In a letter Friday, the Justice Department said it was moving to end the legal dispute with the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform by providing the documents even though it continued to disagree with the order from Judge Amy Berman Jackson.
"In addition, in light of the passage of time and other considerations, such as the department's interest in moving past this litigation and building upon our cooperative relationship with the committee and other congressional committees, the department has decided that it is not in the executive branch's interest to continue litigating this issue at this time," Assistant Attorney General Peter Kadzik, head of the Justice Department's Office of Legislative Affairs, wrote in a letter to committee chairman Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican.
House Republicans sued in 2012 to obtain thousands of emails related to the failed effort by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to track guns across the Southwest border. Under that operation, ATF allowed gunrunners to buy weapons in hopes of tracking them and disrupting Mexican gun-smuggling rings.
Revelations of the operation created a political firestorm and set off a documents dispute between then-Attorney General Eric Holder and Congress that resulted in Holder being held in contempt of Congress.
The Justice Department had already produced tens of thousands of pages of documents, but Congress continued to seek records that the department argued it was entitled to withhold.
The department said that, in producing the documents Friday, it had completed its obligations under the court order.
Chaffetz said in a statement that while the department had turned over "some of the subpoenaed documents," the committee remains entitled to "the full range of documents for which it brought this lawsuit." He said the committee was appealing in hopes of getting additional documents.
end
Wednesday, April 13, 2016
AZMEX I3 12-4-16
AZMEX I3 12 APR 2016
Note: Unknown as to why would anyone want to leave a progressive, democrat, socialist paradise ?
Costa Rica says its doors are closed to Cubans
"Costa Rica already gave everything it could give," says foreign minister
Government complains that countries on the Ecuador-to-Mexico route suffer the consequences of the U.S. Cuban Adjustment Act
Representatives of the U.S., Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador, Cuba and Central America meet Tuesday in San José to tackle migration crisis
In this Nov. 21, 2015 file photo, a Cuban woman migrant uses her cell phone while other Cubans sleep, outside of the border control building in Penas Blancas, Costa Rica, on the border with Nicaragua which closed its borders to Cuban migrants. The Costa Rican Foreign Ministry says no more Cubans will be allowed to transit through en route to the United States. File photo of Cuban migrants who received temporary visas in Costa Rica during the migration crisis that lasted from from November 2015 through March 2016.
1 of 3
Facing a new rush of undocumented migrants from Cuba — with hundreds already in Costa Rica or Panama — the Costa Rican government has called an urgent meeting Tuesday with officials from the United States, Central America, Mexico, Cuba, Colombia and Ecuador to search for a regional answer to a new chapter of the emerging migration crisis. Mario Mateo / Miami Herald Photos: Agencies
JOSÉ MELÉNDEZ
Special to the el Nuevo Herald
SAN JOSÉ, COSTA RICA
Costa Rica has issued a warning to the new wave of undocumented Cuban migrants hoping to travel by land from Ecuador to Central America and eventually the United States: they will not pass.
Foreign Minister Manuel González Sanz told el Nuevo Herald that Costa Rica was already worn down by its handling of the previous wave of 7,800 Cubans who were detained or stranded here from November of 2015 until March.
Manuel González Sanz, Costa Rica's foreign minister
"I want to make absolutely clear, to all the (Cuban) migrants who are coming and those already in Panama, that Costa Rica cannot and will not receive them," González said. The country "will make use of all domestic and international measures at its disposal to address this situation, if we face something similar to what we faced from November to March."
I WANT TO MAKE ABSOLUTELY CLEAR, TO ALL THE (CUBAN) MIGRANTS WHO ARE COMING AND THOSE ALREADY IN PANAMA, THAT COSTA RICA CANNOT AND WILL NOT RECEIVE THEM
Manuel González Sanz, Costa Rica's foreign minister
He added that waves of undocumented Cuban migrants "will continue as long as the U.S. law that favors Cuban migration, the well-known Cuban Adjustment Act, continues," and indicated that there's a profound discomfort in the region with the Act.
The issue of Cuban migration "should be part of the bilateral relations between Cuba and the United States, but the reality is that the countries from Ecuador to Mexico, we are the ones caught in the middle and we are the ones suffering the consequences of laws that incite that migration," the minister said.
The Adjustment Act gives Cuban migrants many benefits not available to other undocumented migrants, such as U.S. residence after 366 days in the United States. Undocumented Cubans who reach U.S. territory are not deported to the island under the U.S. government policy known as "wet-foot/dry-foot."
"Costa Rica already gave everything it could give, did more than it was required to do, and we are definitely not in a position to confront — not as part of a group and certainly not alone, as we did in the past — a situation similar to what the country experienced," he added.
COSTA RICA ALREADY GAVE EVERYTHING IT COULD GIVE, DID MORE THAN IT WAS REQUIRED TO DO
Manuel González Sanz, Costa Rica's foreign minister
The country's government said repeatedly in recent months that any Cubans who enter the country without visas may be deported to Cuba — an option that appears to remain on the table even though the migrants could challenge it in the courts here.
Emergency meeting
The government has called a meeting Tuesday in this capital city of migration and diplomatic officials from the United States, Mexico, Central America, Cuba, Colombia and Ecuador to tackle the threat of a renewed migration crisis.
Panamanian migration authorities reported that another 2,723 Cubans were detained there as of April 6. Adding to the threat of a new crisis has been the large number of migrants from Africa and Asia who travel to South America to join the stream of undocumented migrants heading to the United States.
"If there is not a coordinated, structural approach by all the countries involved, we will continue to have these events affecting countries individually," he added. "But individual action has proven to be too fragile for one country to take on a problem of such proportions."
The previous crisis — the worst Cuban migration crisis in Central America since Fidel Castro rose to power in 1959 — started in mid-November when Costa Rica cracked down on a people-smuggling ring. Left without guides or contacts, undocumented Cubans started to bunch up at the Costa Rican borders with Panama and Nicaragua.
Panama and Costa Rica had to open temporary shelters to care for the detained or stranded Cuban migrants, which eventually totaled more than 9,500. The Costa Rican government issued temporary transit visas to Cubans arriving in November, but on Dec. 18 it also decided to close its border with Panama.
The crisis was finally resolved with an airlift that flew thousands of Cubans from Costa Rica and Panama to El Salvador and Mexico.
The number of Cuban migrants moving through Central America has been increasing rapidly since 2008, when Ecuador lifted its visa requirement for Cubans. Ecuador reimposed its visa requirement in December to try to contain the flow of Cubans.
Costa Rican authorities already have warned that the flow is growing with the help of coyotes — people smugglers — who charge undocumented Cubans up to $15,000 to take them from Ecuador to the Mexican border with the United States.
RELATED CONTENT
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba/article71239892.html#storylink=cpy
Note: Unknown as to why would anyone want to leave a progressive, democrat, socialist paradise ?
Costa Rica says its doors are closed to Cubans
"Costa Rica already gave everything it could give," says foreign minister
Government complains that countries on the Ecuador-to-Mexico route suffer the consequences of the U.S. Cuban Adjustment Act
Representatives of the U.S., Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador, Cuba and Central America meet Tuesday in San José to tackle migration crisis
In this Nov. 21, 2015 file photo, a Cuban woman migrant uses her cell phone while other Cubans sleep, outside of the border control building in Penas Blancas, Costa Rica, on the border with Nicaragua which closed its borders to Cuban migrants. The Costa Rican Foreign Ministry says no more Cubans will be allowed to transit through en route to the United States. File photo of Cuban migrants who received temporary visas in Costa Rica during the migration crisis that lasted from from November 2015 through March 2016.
1 of 3
Facing a new rush of undocumented migrants from Cuba — with hundreds already in Costa Rica or Panama — the Costa Rican government has called an urgent meeting Tuesday with officials from the United States, Central America, Mexico, Cuba, Colombia and Ecuador to search for a regional answer to a new chapter of the emerging migration crisis. Mario Mateo / Miami Herald Photos: Agencies
JOSÉ MELÉNDEZ
Special to the el Nuevo Herald
SAN JOSÉ, COSTA RICA
Costa Rica has issued a warning to the new wave of undocumented Cuban migrants hoping to travel by land from Ecuador to Central America and eventually the United States: they will not pass.
Foreign Minister Manuel González Sanz told el Nuevo Herald that Costa Rica was already worn down by its handling of the previous wave of 7,800 Cubans who were detained or stranded here from November of 2015 until March.
Manuel González Sanz, Costa Rica's foreign minister
"I want to make absolutely clear, to all the (Cuban) migrants who are coming and those already in Panama, that Costa Rica cannot and will not receive them," González said. The country "will make use of all domestic and international measures at its disposal to address this situation, if we face something similar to what we faced from November to March."
I WANT TO MAKE ABSOLUTELY CLEAR, TO ALL THE (CUBAN) MIGRANTS WHO ARE COMING AND THOSE ALREADY IN PANAMA, THAT COSTA RICA CANNOT AND WILL NOT RECEIVE THEM
Manuel González Sanz, Costa Rica's foreign minister
He added that waves of undocumented Cuban migrants "will continue as long as the U.S. law that favors Cuban migration, the well-known Cuban Adjustment Act, continues," and indicated that there's a profound discomfort in the region with the Act.
The issue of Cuban migration "should be part of the bilateral relations between Cuba and the United States, but the reality is that the countries from Ecuador to Mexico, we are the ones caught in the middle and we are the ones suffering the consequences of laws that incite that migration," the minister said.
The Adjustment Act gives Cuban migrants many benefits not available to other undocumented migrants, such as U.S. residence after 366 days in the United States. Undocumented Cubans who reach U.S. territory are not deported to the island under the U.S. government policy known as "wet-foot/dry-foot."
"Costa Rica already gave everything it could give, did more than it was required to do, and we are definitely not in a position to confront — not as part of a group and certainly not alone, as we did in the past — a situation similar to what the country experienced," he added.
COSTA RICA ALREADY GAVE EVERYTHING IT COULD GIVE, DID MORE THAN IT WAS REQUIRED TO DO
Manuel González Sanz, Costa Rica's foreign minister
The country's government said repeatedly in recent months that any Cubans who enter the country without visas may be deported to Cuba — an option that appears to remain on the table even though the migrants could challenge it in the courts here.
Emergency meeting
The government has called a meeting Tuesday in this capital city of migration and diplomatic officials from the United States, Mexico, Central America, Cuba, Colombia and Ecuador to tackle the threat of a renewed migration crisis.
Panamanian migration authorities reported that another 2,723 Cubans were detained there as of April 6. Adding to the threat of a new crisis has been the large number of migrants from Africa and Asia who travel to South America to join the stream of undocumented migrants heading to the United States.
"If there is not a coordinated, structural approach by all the countries involved, we will continue to have these events affecting countries individually," he added. "But individual action has proven to be too fragile for one country to take on a problem of such proportions."
The previous crisis — the worst Cuban migration crisis in Central America since Fidel Castro rose to power in 1959 — started in mid-November when Costa Rica cracked down on a people-smuggling ring. Left without guides or contacts, undocumented Cubans started to bunch up at the Costa Rican borders with Panama and Nicaragua.
Panama and Costa Rica had to open temporary shelters to care for the detained or stranded Cuban migrants, which eventually totaled more than 9,500. The Costa Rican government issued temporary transit visas to Cubans arriving in November, but on Dec. 18 it also decided to close its border with Panama.
The crisis was finally resolved with an airlift that flew thousands of Cubans from Costa Rica and Panama to El Salvador and Mexico.
The number of Cuban migrants moving through Central America has been increasing rapidly since 2008, when Ecuador lifted its visa requirement for Cubans. Ecuador reimposed its visa requirement in December to try to contain the flow of Cubans.
Costa Rican authorities already have warned that the flow is growing with the help of coyotes — people smugglers — who charge undocumented Cubans up to $15,000 to take them from Ecuador to the Mexican border with the United States.
RELATED CONTENT
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba/article71239892.html#storylink=cpy
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
AZMEX UPDATE 10-4-16
AZMEX UPDATE 10 APR 2016
Army destroys poppy plants
Details Published on Friday April 8, 2016,
Written by Special
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=69632
Mexicali, BC.
They were near Ensenada and covering an area of over 13 thousand square meters.
The destruction of seven poppy fields carried out the Mexican Army in a mountainous area, near the municipality of Ensenada.
The Secretariat of National Defense (Sedean) through the Commander of the Second Military Region (Mexicali, B.C.) and 2 / a. Military Zone (Tijuana, B.C.), reported that on 6 April. 2016 Mexican Army personnel, in coordination with the Federal and Municipal Police, located in the municipality of Ensenada, found the plants.
According to reports from the Ministry of Defence, the plants covering an area of approximately 13 thousand 250 square meters, which were destroyed by the method of labor and incineration.
With these actions, the Mexican Army in effective interagency coordination with authorities of the three branches of government, reaffirms its commitment to the people of Mexico to ensure and safeguard their welfare through the realization of activities that contribute to public safety, promptly and timely.
Sedena appreciates the cooperation of the public for their support in denouncing illegal activities and completely anonymous and confidential.
END
Note: for those who might have missed it.
Border Fence Down: Border Patrol Union Says Breach Brings Terrorist Concerns
Border Fence Down - AP James ClarkAP Photo/Nogales International, Jonathan Clark
by LANA SHADWICK 29 Mar 2016
http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2016/03/29/border-fence-down-border-patrol-union-says-breach-brings-terrorist-concerns/
The head of the National Border Patrol Council says a breach in the fence along a ten-mile area in remote areas of the Mexico-Arizona border should cause concern about terrorist threats.
An email from a Border Patrol agent reported that the stretch along the Arizona-Mexico border had the fence cut in order to allow access into the United States from Mexico.
Arizona Public Media reported that the president of the National Border Patrol Council (NBPC) testified in a congressional hearing last week that cameras caught the images of two trucks crossing the area. Border patrol officials were not at the spot to catch them at the time of the illegal crossing.
Brandon Judd, the president of the 16,500 member national union said, "The scariest part is that we don't know what was in those vehicles."
The Arizona publication said he warned that illegal border crossings on the Mexico border from individuals from Pakistan is expected to increase more than three times in this year alone.
Judd added, "Those numbers should alarm everyone and we are seeing a similar trend from other key countries like Bangladesh, Albania and Brazil."
One of the San Bernardino terrorist attackers, Tashfeen Malik allegedly told friends in Pakistan twice over Facebook that she had embraced radical Islam and jihad, as reported by Breitbart California. The attack in San Bernardino left fourteen people dead and 22 wounded. Malik was approved for a K-1 fiancée visa.
In August of 2014, then Texas Governor Rick Perry said a record number of illegal immigrants from Syria, Pakistan and Afghanistan have been apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border, as reported by Breitbart News.
Breitbart Texas reported in late November 2015, that six men from Pakistan and Afghanistan illegally crossed the Arizona border into the United States.
The death toll for last Sunday's Easter-Day massacre in central Pakistan has risen to 72 victims, mostly women and children, as reported by Breitbart News. At least 320 were injured. The Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. In March of 2015, two Taliban suicide bombers detonated a bomb at the entrance to two Christian churches in Lahore, Pakistan. The attack caused seventeen deaths and wounded 80 more.
While he was testifying before the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, the union president also confirmed the existence of the practice of what has become known as "catch and release." Even if illegals are caught after they have crossed the border, the vast majority of illegals in the U.S. are off-limits to detention and deportation.
Breitbart Texas' Brandon Darby reported in January of 2015 that leaked internal training documents from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) revealed that Border Patrol agents received guidelines that instructed them that even if illegals are caught crossing the border, the vast majority are off-limits to federal agents. A trusted federal agent in the CBP provided exclusive copies of the documents to Breitbart Texas and also agreed to an interview on the condition of anonymity. The "catch and release" directive of the Obama Administration violates the "Priority Enforcement Guidelines" (PEP) by refusing to process or deport anyone who entered the country illegally after December 31, 2013.
Judd testified under oath that Deputy Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas stated to him "Why would we NTA [Notice to Appear] those we have no intention of deporting?" Mayorkas also said, "We should not place someone in deportation proceedings, when the courts already have a three to six year back log." Mayorkas is second in command at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Breitbart Texas has reported that in the past, ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) could place a 48-hour hold on illegal immigrants when they were wanted on immigration related issues. The PEP program replaced the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Secure Communities Plan. The policy was released by DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson in November of 2014. The executive order gives ICE ERO (Enforcement and Removal Operations) officers who are in control of the process, the authority to decide who is going to be removed. Texas law enforcement officers have been frustrated about their inability to protect citizens in the state. Jackson County Sheriff Aj (Andy) Louderback told Breitbart Texas, "Now they have all they need, they have plenty of reasons to not remove someone."
During the congressional hearing Judd said that Americans are voting against "the establishment" during the presidential primaries because they have demanded border security for far too long but have been ignored.
According to the Union's website, Judd said during his testimony that "President Obama is tone deaf to their calls. He and his cronies continue to mislead and misinform as they expand amnesty and weaken enforcement and security."
Lana Shadwick is a writer and legal analyst for Breitbart Texas. She has served as an associate judge and prosecutor in Texas. Follow her on Twitter @LanaShadwick2
Destruye Ejército plantíos de amapola
Detalles Publicado el Viernes 08 de Abril de 2016,
Escrito por Especial
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=69632
Mexicali, BC.
Estaban cerca de Ensenada y cubrían una superficie de más de 13 mil metros cuadrados.
La destrucción de siete plantíos de amapola llevó a cabo personal del Ejercito Mexicano en una zona montañosa, en las cercanías del municipio del Ensenada.
La Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional (Sedean) por conducto de la Comandancia de la II Región Militar (Mexicali, B.C.) y la 2/a. Zona Militar (Tijuana, B.C.), informaron que el día 6 abril. 2016, personal del Ejército Mexicano, en coordinación con la Policía Federal y Municipal, localizaron en el Municipio de Ensenada, los plantíos.
De acuerdo a los reportes de la sedeña, los plantío cubrían una superficie de aproximadamente 13 mil 250 metros cuadrados, por lo que fueron destruidos por el método de mano de obra e incineración.
Con acciones como estas, el Ejército Mexicano en efectiva coordinación interinstitucional con autoridades de los tres órdenes de gobierno, refrenda su compromiso con el pueblo de México de velar y salvaguardar su bienestar, mediante la materialización de actividades que coadyuven en la seguridad pública de manera pronta y oportuna.
La Sedena agradece la colaboración de la ciudadanía por su apoyo al denunciar actividades ilícitas de manera anónima y totalmente confidencial.
END
Army destroys poppy plants
Details Published on Friday April 8, 2016,
Written by Special
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=69632
Mexicali, BC.
They were near Ensenada and covering an area of over 13 thousand square meters.
The destruction of seven poppy fields carried out the Mexican Army in a mountainous area, near the municipality of Ensenada.
The Secretariat of National Defense (Sedean) through the Commander of the Second Military Region (Mexicali, B.C.) and 2 / a. Military Zone (Tijuana, B.C.), reported that on 6 April. 2016 Mexican Army personnel, in coordination with the Federal and Municipal Police, located in the municipality of Ensenada, found the plants.
According to reports from the Ministry of Defence, the plants covering an area of approximately 13 thousand 250 square meters, which were destroyed by the method of labor and incineration.
With these actions, the Mexican Army in effective interagency coordination with authorities of the three branches of government, reaffirms its commitment to the people of Mexico to ensure and safeguard their welfare through the realization of activities that contribute to public safety, promptly and timely.
Sedena appreciates the cooperation of the public for their support in denouncing illegal activities and completely anonymous and confidential.
END
Note: for those who might have missed it.
Border Fence Down: Border Patrol Union Says Breach Brings Terrorist Concerns
Border Fence Down - AP James ClarkAP Photo/Nogales International, Jonathan Clark
by LANA SHADWICK 29 Mar 2016
http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2016/03/29/border-fence-down-border-patrol-union-says-breach-brings-terrorist-concerns/
The head of the National Border Patrol Council says a breach in the fence along a ten-mile area in remote areas of the Mexico-Arizona border should cause concern about terrorist threats.
An email from a Border Patrol agent reported that the stretch along the Arizona-Mexico border had the fence cut in order to allow access into the United States from Mexico.
Arizona Public Media reported that the president of the National Border Patrol Council (NBPC) testified in a congressional hearing last week that cameras caught the images of two trucks crossing the area. Border patrol officials were not at the spot to catch them at the time of the illegal crossing.
Brandon Judd, the president of the 16,500 member national union said, "The scariest part is that we don't know what was in those vehicles."
The Arizona publication said he warned that illegal border crossings on the Mexico border from individuals from Pakistan is expected to increase more than three times in this year alone.
Judd added, "Those numbers should alarm everyone and we are seeing a similar trend from other key countries like Bangladesh, Albania and Brazil."
One of the San Bernardino terrorist attackers, Tashfeen Malik allegedly told friends in Pakistan twice over Facebook that she had embraced radical Islam and jihad, as reported by Breitbart California. The attack in San Bernardino left fourteen people dead and 22 wounded. Malik was approved for a K-1 fiancée visa.
In August of 2014, then Texas Governor Rick Perry said a record number of illegal immigrants from Syria, Pakistan and Afghanistan have been apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border, as reported by Breitbart News.
Breitbart Texas reported in late November 2015, that six men from Pakistan and Afghanistan illegally crossed the Arizona border into the United States.
The death toll for last Sunday's Easter-Day massacre in central Pakistan has risen to 72 victims, mostly women and children, as reported by Breitbart News. At least 320 were injured. The Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. In March of 2015, two Taliban suicide bombers detonated a bomb at the entrance to two Christian churches in Lahore, Pakistan. The attack caused seventeen deaths and wounded 80 more.
While he was testifying before the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, the union president also confirmed the existence of the practice of what has become known as "catch and release." Even if illegals are caught after they have crossed the border, the vast majority of illegals in the U.S. are off-limits to detention and deportation.
Breitbart Texas' Brandon Darby reported in January of 2015 that leaked internal training documents from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) revealed that Border Patrol agents received guidelines that instructed them that even if illegals are caught crossing the border, the vast majority are off-limits to federal agents. A trusted federal agent in the CBP provided exclusive copies of the documents to Breitbart Texas and also agreed to an interview on the condition of anonymity. The "catch and release" directive of the Obama Administration violates the "Priority Enforcement Guidelines" (PEP) by refusing to process or deport anyone who entered the country illegally after December 31, 2013.
Judd testified under oath that Deputy Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas stated to him "Why would we NTA [Notice to Appear] those we have no intention of deporting?" Mayorkas also said, "We should not place someone in deportation proceedings, when the courts already have a three to six year back log." Mayorkas is second in command at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Breitbart Texas has reported that in the past, ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) could place a 48-hour hold on illegal immigrants when they were wanted on immigration related issues. The PEP program replaced the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Secure Communities Plan. The policy was released by DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson in November of 2014. The executive order gives ICE ERO (Enforcement and Removal Operations) officers who are in control of the process, the authority to decide who is going to be removed. Texas law enforcement officers have been frustrated about their inability to protect citizens in the state. Jackson County Sheriff Aj (Andy) Louderback told Breitbart Texas, "Now they have all they need, they have plenty of reasons to not remove someone."
During the congressional hearing Judd said that Americans are voting against "the establishment" during the presidential primaries because they have demanded border security for far too long but have been ignored.
According to the Union's website, Judd said during his testimony that "President Obama is tone deaf to their calls. He and his cronies continue to mislead and misinform as they expand amnesty and weaken enforcement and security."
Lana Shadwick is a writer and legal analyst for Breitbart Texas. She has served as an associate judge and prosecutor in Texas. Follow her on Twitter @LanaShadwick2
Destruye Ejército plantíos de amapola
Detalles Publicado el Viernes 08 de Abril de 2016,
Escrito por Especial
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=69632
Mexicali, BC.
Estaban cerca de Ensenada y cubrían una superficie de más de 13 mil metros cuadrados.
La destrucción de siete plantíos de amapola llevó a cabo personal del Ejercito Mexicano en una zona montañosa, en las cercanías del municipio del Ensenada.
La Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional (Sedean) por conducto de la Comandancia de la II Región Militar (Mexicali, B.C.) y la 2/a. Zona Militar (Tijuana, B.C.), informaron que el día 6 abril. 2016, personal del Ejército Mexicano, en coordinación con la Policía Federal y Municipal, localizaron en el Municipio de Ensenada, los plantíos.
De acuerdo a los reportes de la sedeña, los plantío cubrían una superficie de aproximadamente 13 mil 250 metros cuadrados, por lo que fueron destruidos por el método de mano de obra e incineración.
Con acciones como estas, el Ejército Mexicano en efectiva coordinación interinstitucional con autoridades de los tres órdenes de gobierno, refrenda su compromiso con el pueblo de México de velar y salvaguardar su bienestar, mediante la materialización de actividades que coadyuven en la seguridad pública de manera pronta y oportuna.
La Sedena agradece la colaboración de la ciudadanía por su apoyo al denunciar actividades ilícitas de manera anónima y totalmente confidencial.
END
Thursday, April 7, 2016
AZMEX UPDATE 6-4-16
AZMEX UPDATE 6 APR 2016
Note: The usual "harsh" sentences in SCC
Woman is seventh suspect arrested in home invasion case
Nogales International Updated 11 hrs ago (1)
http://www.nogalesinternational.com/news/woman-is-seventh-suspect-arrested-in-home-invasion-case/article_66e0f67e-fb9c-11e5-98c8-7b7e9b8e5e95.html
A seventh person has been arrested for their alleged role in an armed home invasion in Nogales in January.
Priscilla Coronado, 37, of Nogales, was arrested shortly before 11 a.m. Tuesday after investigators with the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HDTA) Task force and Nogales Police Department tracked her down in Tucson near West Valencia Road and Calle Santa Cruz, NPD said in a news release.
Coronado was arrested without incident and transported in police custody to Nogales, where she was booked into the county jail on two felony charges of hindering prosecution and weapons misconduct.
NPD said Coronado is suspected of aiding a group of armed men who, while dressed in tactical gear, forced their way into a home on West Wise Street on Jan. 28 and confronted several people, including a 2-month-old infant.
Six others have already been arrested in the case: Joe Leneer Valencia, Miguel Huerta Zuniga, Armando Ruiz Valencia, Isaac Chaparro, Juan Ricardo Chaparro and Gabriel Maldonado. They were each charged with one count of first-degree burglary and five counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Ruiz Valencia was charged with an additional count of impersonating a police officer.
Coronado was on probation at the time of her arrest Tuesday, having been convicted on March 9, 2015 at Santa Cruz County Superior Court after trying to smuggle 2.5 pounds of China white heroin, 12.76 pounds of Mexican brown heroin and 15.14 pounds of cocaine into the United States. Judge Anna Montoya-Paez sentenced her to five years of probation for the conviction, including 120 days in jail.
END
Note: video at link.
Arizona college imposes mandatory fee to fund scholarship for illegal immigrants
By Malia Zimmerman
Published April 06, 2016 FoxNews.com
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/04/06/arizona-college-imposes-mandatory-fee-to-fund-scholarship-for-illegal-immigrants.html?intcmp=hppop
More: http://dcourier.com/news/2016/apr/05/prescott-college-charge-fee-pay-undocumented-stude/
College students using federal aid to offset tuition costs
Never autoplay videos
A private college in Arizona is charging students a fee to fund a scholarship for illegal immigrants, a controversial move supporters say gives a hand to those who need it but anti-illegal immigration advocates call irresponsible.
Prescott College is tacking a $30 annual fee onto its $28,000 annual tuition to establish an annual scholarship for "undocumented" students, as part of a policy first proposed by students and faculty from the undergraduate and Social Justice and Human Rights Master of Arts divisions. While students can opt out of paying the fee, if they do nothing it will be automatically imposed. Backers say it helps reverse what they call Arizona's reputation as a "national example of discriminatory politics."
"I am proud that our students take on the role of scholar activists," said school President John Flicker, adding that the university is committed to "broaden access to higher education for a diverse group of students" and "mobilize its resources towards social justice."
"It is beyond absurd that this college is going to force all the students to subsidize the education of a student who is in the country illegally," Vaughan
- Jessica Vaughan, Center for Immigration Studies
Supporters note that illegal immigrants are allowed to attend state and private colleges in Arizona, but in most cases cannot legally work or receive government grants or loans.
Making legal residents enrolled at the school pay for illegal immigrants' education is a slap in the face to a generation already facing its post-college years saddled with enormous debt, said Andrew Kloster, legal Fellow for the Center for Legal & Judicial Studies at Heritage Foundation.
Prescott College President John Flicker is proud his students are supporting illegal immigrant classmates.
end
PESP confiscates 315 kilos of marijuana on the El Saric road
Details Published on Thursday April 7, 2016,
Written by Cesar Barragan / El Diario
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=69589
NOGALES.
The drugs were found in an abandoned car.
Members of the State Public Security Police (PESP) secured 315 kilograms of marijuana were inside a vehicle located on the road to Saric.
According to reports from the PESP, this finding occurred around 17:15 hours when officers conducted surveillance tours on the Nogales-Saric road.
It was at kilometer 1 + 150, a Suzuki, gray XL7 model 2008, which was in apparent state of abandonment.
After reviewing the car found inside 36 packages containing pressed green and dry grass with physical characteristics of marijuana that yielded a weight of 315 kilos of that drug.
According to official tabulators it has been distributed narcotics retail, equivalent to 630 thousand doses, with value of more than 12 million pesos.
When querying vehicle data authorities were alerted that it had been reported stolen in the city of Phoenix, Arizona, dated 25 February 2015.
Due to the above facts, elements of the State Public Security Police proceeded to securing the vehicle and 36 drug packets, made available to the Federal Public Ministry.
end
Semar and PESP seize two weapons
Details Published on Wednesday April 6, 2016,
Written by Editorial Staff
Hermosillo.
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=69515
They result of surveillance operations carried out in the south of the state, members of the State Public Security Police (PESP) and Secretariat of the Navy (Semar), assured two people for possession of firearms.
In events that occurred yesterday in the municipality of Vícam, the arrest of Jesus V. of 34 years was achieved.
It was in the Kino colony where they surprised a man walking wearing what at first glance looked like a firearm, after stopping they did the corresponding inspection and managed to secure the .45 gun.
They also said 30 rounds of ammunition, 40 wrappers with granulated substance, similar to the drug known as "crystal", plus 32 envelopes and a bag with green grass, with physical characteristics of marijuana.
Due to the above facts, the joint operation conducted and the person, who was at the disposal of the Federal Public Ministry for the appropriate inquiries.
ANOTHER IN CAJEME
In the municipality of Cajeme the arrest of Luis D. of 42 years for carrying apparently drug substance and possession of a firearm.
During tours of surveillance in the colony Ejidal Zone Pueblo Yaqui village, they surprised the subject who was asked to perform the corresponding inspection, finding 8 wrappers containing granulated substance and a pistol and five rounds of .380 ammunition .
Therefore, they proceeded to arrest the person who was made available to the Public Ministry of Federal Jurisdiction for the corresponding procedures.
finish
Note: no info if it was a live grenade
Grenade found in an abandoned home in la Libertad
http://www.elregionaldesonora.com.mx/noticia/56279
The house is located in the calle Rio Magdalena River between Montezuma and San Juan.
Neighbors said that army personnel were in the house but withdrew without taking the artifact, appearing that they did not bring the right equipment.
At the site are local elements who guard the area to prevent any curious approach.
finish
Note: The usual "harsh" sentences in SCC
Woman is seventh suspect arrested in home invasion case
Nogales International Updated 11 hrs ago (1)
http://www.nogalesinternational.com/news/woman-is-seventh-suspect-arrested-in-home-invasion-case/article_66e0f67e-fb9c-11e5-98c8-7b7e9b8e5e95.html
A seventh person has been arrested for their alleged role in an armed home invasion in Nogales in January.
Priscilla Coronado, 37, of Nogales, was arrested shortly before 11 a.m. Tuesday after investigators with the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HDTA) Task force and Nogales Police Department tracked her down in Tucson near West Valencia Road and Calle Santa Cruz, NPD said in a news release.
Coronado was arrested without incident and transported in police custody to Nogales, where she was booked into the county jail on two felony charges of hindering prosecution and weapons misconduct.
NPD said Coronado is suspected of aiding a group of armed men who, while dressed in tactical gear, forced their way into a home on West Wise Street on Jan. 28 and confronted several people, including a 2-month-old infant.
Six others have already been arrested in the case: Joe Leneer Valencia, Miguel Huerta Zuniga, Armando Ruiz Valencia, Isaac Chaparro, Juan Ricardo Chaparro and Gabriel Maldonado. They were each charged with one count of first-degree burglary and five counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Ruiz Valencia was charged with an additional count of impersonating a police officer.
Coronado was on probation at the time of her arrest Tuesday, having been convicted on March 9, 2015 at Santa Cruz County Superior Court after trying to smuggle 2.5 pounds of China white heroin, 12.76 pounds of Mexican brown heroin and 15.14 pounds of cocaine into the United States. Judge Anna Montoya-Paez sentenced her to five years of probation for the conviction, including 120 days in jail.
END
Note: video at link.
Arizona college imposes mandatory fee to fund scholarship for illegal immigrants
By Malia Zimmerman
Published April 06, 2016 FoxNews.com
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/04/06/arizona-college-imposes-mandatory-fee-to-fund-scholarship-for-illegal-immigrants.html?intcmp=hppop
More: http://dcourier.com/news/2016/apr/05/prescott-college-charge-fee-pay-undocumented-stude/
College students using federal aid to offset tuition costs
Never autoplay videos
A private college in Arizona is charging students a fee to fund a scholarship for illegal immigrants, a controversial move supporters say gives a hand to those who need it but anti-illegal immigration advocates call irresponsible.
Prescott College is tacking a $30 annual fee onto its $28,000 annual tuition to establish an annual scholarship for "undocumented" students, as part of a policy first proposed by students and faculty from the undergraduate and Social Justice and Human Rights Master of Arts divisions. While students can opt out of paying the fee, if they do nothing it will be automatically imposed. Backers say it helps reverse what they call Arizona's reputation as a "national example of discriminatory politics."
"I am proud that our students take on the role of scholar activists," said school President John Flicker, adding that the university is committed to "broaden access to higher education for a diverse group of students" and "mobilize its resources towards social justice."
"It is beyond absurd that this college is going to force all the students to subsidize the education of a student who is in the country illegally," Vaughan
- Jessica Vaughan, Center for Immigration Studies
Supporters note that illegal immigrants are allowed to attend state and private colleges in Arizona, but in most cases cannot legally work or receive government grants or loans.
Making legal residents enrolled at the school pay for illegal immigrants' education is a slap in the face to a generation already facing its post-college years saddled with enormous debt, said Andrew Kloster, legal Fellow for the Center for Legal & Judicial Studies at Heritage Foundation.
Prescott College President John Flicker is proud his students are supporting illegal immigrant classmates.
end
PESP confiscates 315 kilos of marijuana on the El Saric road
Details Published on Thursday April 7, 2016,
Written by Cesar Barragan / El Diario
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=69589
NOGALES.
The drugs were found in an abandoned car.
Members of the State Public Security Police (PESP) secured 315 kilograms of marijuana were inside a vehicle located on the road to Saric.
According to reports from the PESP, this finding occurred around 17:15 hours when officers conducted surveillance tours on the Nogales-Saric road.
It was at kilometer 1 + 150, a Suzuki, gray XL7 model 2008, which was in apparent state of abandonment.
After reviewing the car found inside 36 packages containing pressed green and dry grass with physical characteristics of marijuana that yielded a weight of 315 kilos of that drug.
According to official tabulators it has been distributed narcotics retail, equivalent to 630 thousand doses, with value of more than 12 million pesos.
When querying vehicle data authorities were alerted that it had been reported stolen in the city of Phoenix, Arizona, dated 25 February 2015.
Due to the above facts, elements of the State Public Security Police proceeded to securing the vehicle and 36 drug packets, made available to the Federal Public Ministry.
end
Semar and PESP seize two weapons
Details Published on Wednesday April 6, 2016,
Written by Editorial Staff
Hermosillo.
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=69515
They result of surveillance operations carried out in the south of the state, members of the State Public Security Police (PESP) and Secretariat of the Navy (Semar), assured two people for possession of firearms.
In events that occurred yesterday in the municipality of Vícam, the arrest of Jesus V. of 34 years was achieved.
It was in the Kino colony where they surprised a man walking wearing what at first glance looked like a firearm, after stopping they did the corresponding inspection and managed to secure the .45 gun.
They also said 30 rounds of ammunition, 40 wrappers with granulated substance, similar to the drug known as "crystal", plus 32 envelopes and a bag with green grass, with physical characteristics of marijuana.
Due to the above facts, the joint operation conducted and the person, who was at the disposal of the Federal Public Ministry for the appropriate inquiries.
ANOTHER IN CAJEME
In the municipality of Cajeme the arrest of Luis D. of 42 years for carrying apparently drug substance and possession of a firearm.
During tours of surveillance in the colony Ejidal Zone Pueblo Yaqui village, they surprised the subject who was asked to perform the corresponding inspection, finding 8 wrappers containing granulated substance and a pistol and five rounds of .380 ammunition .
Therefore, they proceeded to arrest the person who was made available to the Public Ministry of Federal Jurisdiction for the corresponding procedures.
finish
Note: no info if it was a live grenade
Grenade found in an abandoned home in la Libertad
http://www.elregionaldesonora.com.mx/noticia/56279
The house is located in the calle Rio Magdalena River between Montezuma and San Juan.
Neighbors said that army personnel were in the house but withdrew without taking the artifact, appearing that they did not bring the right equipment.
At the site are local elements who guard the area to prevent any curious approach.
finish
Wednesday, April 6, 2016
AZMEX I3 6-4-16
AZMEX I3 6 APR 2016
Note: In AZ as rest of country, Driver's license is primary ID for purchase of firearms.
As always, AP describes illegal immigrants as "immigrants".
Comment: Children brought to the US by their parents, legally, do not have the problems, and if they should desire citizenship someday, usually a smooth path.
9th Circuit: AZ Dreamers can get driver's licenses
Posted: Apr 05, 2016 7:21 PM MST
Updated: Apr 05, 2016 7:21 PM MST
By The Associated Press
By News Staff
http://www.azfamily.com/story/31652176/9th-circuit-az-dreamers-can-get-drivers-licenses?autostart=true
PHOENIX (AP) -
A federal appeals court has affirmed the ability of young immigrants protected from deportation to obtain an Arizona driver's license.
In a 42-page opinion Tuesday, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in California ruled the plaintiffs suffered irreparable harm from Arizona's policy.
[PDF: Read the Court's published opinion on Arizona Dream Coalition et al v. Janice Brewer et al]
http://lmgcorporate.com/phxdigital/news/4-5-16/15-15307.pdf
Plaintiff lawyers say the policy was discriminatory and impeded the immigrants' ability to work and go to school.
A federal judge in Phoenix issued a permanent injunction in the case in January 2015.
At a hearing in Tucson last August, Arizona attorneys argued to reinstate the driver's license ban for immigrants who are part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
The state said it denied licenses over liability concerns and to reduce the risk of the licenses being used to improperly access public benefits.
In December 2014, then Rep.-elect Jay Lawrence of Scottsdale was working on a bill to "place the words NON CITIZEN across the driver's license of illegals in our state." He planned to introduce it in the legislative session that began Jan. 12, 2015, but later abandoned the measure after learning there already is a designation for non-citizens.
"Driver's licenses have a letter 'F' that designates someone a non-citizen," he said one day after the session got underway.
There was never a hearing on the measure and it has not been reintroduced.
end
Note: In AZ as rest of country, Driver's license is primary ID for purchase of firearms.
As always, AP describes illegal immigrants as "immigrants".
Comment: Children brought to the US by their parents, legally, do not have the problems, and if they should desire citizenship someday, usually a smooth path.
9th Circuit: AZ Dreamers can get driver's licenses
Posted: Apr 05, 2016 7:21 PM MST
Updated: Apr 05, 2016 7:21 PM MST
By The Associated Press
By News Staff
http://www.azfamily.com/story/31652176/9th-circuit-az-dreamers-can-get-drivers-licenses?autostart=true
PHOENIX (AP) -
A federal appeals court has affirmed the ability of young immigrants protected from deportation to obtain an Arizona driver's license.
In a 42-page opinion Tuesday, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in California ruled the plaintiffs suffered irreparable harm from Arizona's policy.
[PDF: Read the Court's published opinion on Arizona Dream Coalition et al v. Janice Brewer et al]
http://lmgcorporate.com/phxdigital/news/4-5-16/15-15307.pdf
Plaintiff lawyers say the policy was discriminatory and impeded the immigrants' ability to work and go to school.
A federal judge in Phoenix issued a permanent injunction in the case in January 2015.
At a hearing in Tucson last August, Arizona attorneys argued to reinstate the driver's license ban for immigrants who are part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
The state said it denied licenses over liability concerns and to reduce the risk of the licenses being used to improperly access public benefits.
In December 2014, then Rep.-elect Jay Lawrence of Scottsdale was working on a bill to "place the words NON CITIZEN across the driver's license of illegals in our state." He planned to introduce it in the legislative session that began Jan. 12, 2015, but later abandoned the measure after learning there already is a designation for non-citizens.
"Driver's licenses have a letter 'F' that designates someone a non-citizen," he said one day after the session got underway.
There was never a hearing on the measure and it has not been reintroduced.
end
Tuesday, April 5, 2016
AZMEX UPDATE2 5-4-16
AZMEX UPDATE2 5 APR 2016
NOTE: Those interested in the issue of weapons smuggled into Mexico may want to pay particular attention to the "harsh sentences" imposed. Story relevant to crime and "punishment" overall, including the restitution farce. Federal weapons charges?
Three sentenced, two missing in car theft case involving AK-47, drugs
Nogales International 10 hrs ago
http://www.nogalesinternational.com/news/three-sentenced-two-missing-in-car-theft-case-involving-ak/article_6cab48ec-fac1-11e5-8824-bb9bcf86424b.html
Cecily Abed
Richard Junior Estrada
Quiana Workman
Larry Harris
Two men and a woman from Avondale, Ariz. were sentenced at Santa Cruz County Superior Court for their roles in a car theft that ended at the Dennis DeConcini Port of Entry in Nogales with the discovery of an assault rifle and narcotics.
Two additional suspects have warrants for their arrest after they skipped out on court proceedings.
On Aug. 4, 2015, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer assigned to stolen vehicle interdiction duty at the port stopped a Kia Optima driven by 19-year-old Cecily Abed of Sun City, Ariz. as she tried to drive into Mexico. When Abed appeared nervous and couldn't produce a vehicle registration, she was sent for a secondary inspection, court records show.
During the inspection, officers reportedly found an AK-47 assault rifle hidden under the rear passenger seat. When they searched the spare tire compartment, they found four AK-47 magazines, two .308 rounds, three baggies of heroin and a baggie of methamphetamine. In addition, a records check showed that the vehicle had been reported stolen in Avondale.
Abed reportedly told investigators that Richard Junior Estrada, 18, had given her the car after she arrived in Nogales, Ariz., and that he had then boarded another car with other members of their group. She said the stolen vehicle had been sold for $3,000 to someone in Mexico and she expected to be paid an unspecified amount of cash to drive it across the border.
The next day, 20-year-old Larry Lamar Harris of Avondale tried to enter the United States through the DeConcini port, accompanied by 22-year-old Quiana Workman, also of Avondale, and a juvenile male. The three were detained and questioned regarding their involvement in the stolen Optima case, and Harris allegedly said that Estrada had organized the theft to pay off his girlfriend Workman's expenses from a prior stolen car arrest.
Harris and the juvenile told investigators that the AK-47 belonged to Estrada, and that he wanted to take it to Mexico to sell. Estrada "would sell anything to make money," Harris reportedly said. He also said he expected to be paid $500 for his own role in the operation.
On Aug. 7, 2015, Estrada and Alexis Alfredo Armenta Castro, both 18 and residents of Avondale, were arrested as they tried to re-enter the United States from Mexico. Estrada reportedly admitted that he knew about the rifle, but said it belonged to Abed's boyfriend, not him.
As for the stolen Optima, Estrada said Harris orchestrated the theft from a neighbor who lived three houses away from Harris. Harris denied the allegation, telling a probation officer: "Do I look like the kind of fool that would steal a vehicle from right next door to where he lives?"
Harris was sentenced March 28 by Judge Thomas Fink to three years of probation after pleading guilty to a Class 6, open-ended attempted car theft charge. He was also sentenced to 15 days in jail, with credit for 15 days already served.
Estrada was sentenced Feb. 8, also to three years of probation, including 56 days in jail with 56 days already served.
Abed failed to show up for a sentencing hearing on Feb. 22 and the judge issued a warrant for her arrest.
Armenta disappeared while his case was still pending at Nogales Justice Court. Justice of the Peace Emilio Velasquez issued a warrant for his arrest on Jan. 29.
The juvenile arrested at the port with Harris and Workman had his case transferred to Maricopa County.
Workman was sentenced March 14 for her role in this incident, as well as the previous arrest that Harris alluded to. In that earlier case, she was arrested June 9, 2015 when she tried to drive a stolen Nissan Titan pickup into Mexico through the DeConcini port.
Workman was convicted of single Class 6 felony count of attempted vehicle theft as part of a plea agreement combining the two cases. Judge Fink sentenced her to three years probation including 30 days in jail, with no credit for time served.
The co-defendants in the Optima theft were ordered to pay $6,399 in restitution to Allstate insurance. Workman must also pay $2,370 to Liberty Mutual insurance as restitution in the truck-theft case.
(Note: The Sheriff's Office did not have a mug shot available for Armenta.)
END
NOTE: Those interested in the issue of weapons smuggled into Mexico may want to pay particular attention to the "harsh sentences" imposed. Story relevant to crime and "punishment" overall, including the restitution farce. Federal weapons charges?
Three sentenced, two missing in car theft case involving AK-47, drugs
Nogales International 10 hrs ago
http://www.nogalesinternational.com/news/three-sentenced-two-missing-in-car-theft-case-involving-ak/article_6cab48ec-fac1-11e5-8824-bb9bcf86424b.html
Cecily Abed
Richard Junior Estrada
Quiana Workman
Larry Harris
Two men and a woman from Avondale, Ariz. were sentenced at Santa Cruz County Superior Court for their roles in a car theft that ended at the Dennis DeConcini Port of Entry in Nogales with the discovery of an assault rifle and narcotics.
Two additional suspects have warrants for their arrest after they skipped out on court proceedings.
On Aug. 4, 2015, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer assigned to stolen vehicle interdiction duty at the port stopped a Kia Optima driven by 19-year-old Cecily Abed of Sun City, Ariz. as she tried to drive into Mexico. When Abed appeared nervous and couldn't produce a vehicle registration, she was sent for a secondary inspection, court records show.
During the inspection, officers reportedly found an AK-47 assault rifle hidden under the rear passenger seat. When they searched the spare tire compartment, they found four AK-47 magazines, two .308 rounds, three baggies of heroin and a baggie of methamphetamine. In addition, a records check showed that the vehicle had been reported stolen in Avondale.
Abed reportedly told investigators that Richard Junior Estrada, 18, had given her the car after she arrived in Nogales, Ariz., and that he had then boarded another car with other members of their group. She said the stolen vehicle had been sold for $3,000 to someone in Mexico and she expected to be paid an unspecified amount of cash to drive it across the border.
The next day, 20-year-old Larry Lamar Harris of Avondale tried to enter the United States through the DeConcini port, accompanied by 22-year-old Quiana Workman, also of Avondale, and a juvenile male. The three were detained and questioned regarding their involvement in the stolen Optima case, and Harris allegedly said that Estrada had organized the theft to pay off his girlfriend Workman's expenses from a prior stolen car arrest.
Harris and the juvenile told investigators that the AK-47 belonged to Estrada, and that he wanted to take it to Mexico to sell. Estrada "would sell anything to make money," Harris reportedly said. He also said he expected to be paid $500 for his own role in the operation.
On Aug. 7, 2015, Estrada and Alexis Alfredo Armenta Castro, both 18 and residents of Avondale, were arrested as they tried to re-enter the United States from Mexico. Estrada reportedly admitted that he knew about the rifle, but said it belonged to Abed's boyfriend, not him.
As for the stolen Optima, Estrada said Harris orchestrated the theft from a neighbor who lived three houses away from Harris. Harris denied the allegation, telling a probation officer: "Do I look like the kind of fool that would steal a vehicle from right next door to where he lives?"
Harris was sentenced March 28 by Judge Thomas Fink to three years of probation after pleading guilty to a Class 6, open-ended attempted car theft charge. He was also sentenced to 15 days in jail, with credit for 15 days already served.
Estrada was sentenced Feb. 8, also to three years of probation, including 56 days in jail with 56 days already served.
Abed failed to show up for a sentencing hearing on Feb. 22 and the judge issued a warrant for her arrest.
Armenta disappeared while his case was still pending at Nogales Justice Court. Justice of the Peace Emilio Velasquez issued a warrant for his arrest on Jan. 29.
The juvenile arrested at the port with Harris and Workman had his case transferred to Maricopa County.
Workman was sentenced March 14 for her role in this incident, as well as the previous arrest that Harris alluded to. In that earlier case, she was arrested June 9, 2015 when she tried to drive a stolen Nissan Titan pickup into Mexico through the DeConcini port.
Workman was convicted of single Class 6 felony count of attempted vehicle theft as part of a plea agreement combining the two cases. Judge Fink sentenced her to three years probation including 30 days in jail, with no credit for time served.
The co-defendants in the Optima theft were ordered to pay $6,399 in restitution to Allstate insurance. Workman must also pay $2,370 to Liberty Mutual insurance as restitution in the truck-theft case.
(Note: The Sheriff's Office did not have a mug shot available for Armenta.)
END
AZMEX SPECIAL 5-4-16
AZMEX SPECIAL 5 APR 2016
Vehicular homicide not enough to detain illegal immigrants: DHS
Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Sarah Saldana said "ICE will work tirelessly to ensure justice is done" in Eswin Mejia's capture and arrest. (Associated Press) more >
By Stephen Dinan - The Washington Times - Monday, April 4, 2016
Even being convicted of homicide isn't enough to ensure illegal immigrants are detained by federal agents, the government's top deportation official said in a letter to Congress released Monday.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Sarah Saldana said neither Obama administration policy nor federal law required her agency to detain Edwin Mejia, who arrived in the U.S. illegally as part of the surge of unaccompanied children from Central America, after he was charged with vehicular homicide in Nebraska.
Still, she said her officers should have taken the initiative to detain him of their own volition and that she has notified all of her bureaus nationwide to do a better job of evaluating people they're called to detain.
Mr. Mejia stands accused of a drunken-driving accident this year that killed a young Iowa woman in Omaha — but federal immigration agents never showed up to collect him. After he posted bond with local authorities, he absconded.
"After further review, we believe that further enforcement action would have served an important federal interest in this case," Ms. Saldana said in a letter to Sen. Ben Sasse, Nebraska Republican, which the senator released Monday.
ICE said it first encountered Mr. Mejia, who also goes by the first name Eswin, at the border in Arizona in May 2013. He was a 16-year-old at the time. The Border Patrol, acting under President Obama's interpretation of the law, admitted Mr. Mejia and turned him over to social services, then eventually sent him to live with his brother in the U.S.
Ms. Saldana did not say whether the brother was in the U.S. legally.
In January, police say, Mr. Mejia was street racing while drunk when he struck the vehicle driven by Sarah Root, 21. She died as a result of her injuries.
Mr. Mejia posted bond on the homicide charge, and ICE officers did not come pick him up for detention, allowing him to disappear into the shadows.
Now ICE is scrambling to try to find him. Ms. Saldana said her agency has asked Honduran officials to see if he shows up back there.
Mr. Sasse was not satisfied. He called Ms. Saldana's response "an embarrassment" to her agency and elevated the issue to Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, demanding to know who specifically was responsible for deciding not to send officers to pick up Mr. Mejia.
"Why did ICE decline to detain Mr. Mejia, despite several requests to do so by the Douglas County Police Department? Were each of these requests denied on a case-by-case basis?" Mr. Sasse said in his letter to Mr. Johnson.
Ms. Saldana, in her letter to Mr. Sasse, said being charged with vehicular homicide wasn't enough to make Mr. Mejia a priority under standards set by Mr. Obama and Mr. Johnson in 2014.
In fact, even if he were convicted of the charge, ICE still wouldn't have to hold him, Ms. Saldana said.
"Even if he were convicted of the offense, motor vehicle homicide — driving under the influence, the conviction would not constitute a crime of violence under the immigration laws, and consequently, would not constitute an aggravated felony," she wrote. "The conviction would not render him subject to mandatory detention, nor would it significantly impact his eligibility to apply for relief or protection from removal."
At a Senate hearing last month, Ms. Saldana had said her officers didn't come to collect Mr. Mejia because Ms. Root was still alive, so the case didn't rise to their priorities. Her letter Monday, however, says that even though she later died, her agents wouldn't have necessarily considered Mr. Mejia a priority.
Under pressure from activists who said the number of deportations was too high, Mr. Obama and Mr. Johnson in 2014 announced a policy of deporting only those with the most serious criminal records.
Those policies mean that more than 9 million of the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the U.S. have little fear of being kicked out.
Mr. Mejia, however, was already facing deportation under his unaccompanied minor case, though that proceeding has dragged on. His court appearance was slated for later this month — nearly three years after he first entered the U.S.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/apr/4/vehicular-homicide-not-enough-detain-illegal-immig/
END
Vehicular homicide not enough to detain illegal immigrants: DHS
Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Sarah Saldana said "ICE will work tirelessly to ensure justice is done" in Eswin Mejia's capture and arrest. (Associated Press) more >
By Stephen Dinan - The Washington Times - Monday, April 4, 2016
Even being convicted of homicide isn't enough to ensure illegal immigrants are detained by federal agents, the government's top deportation official said in a letter to Congress released Monday.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Sarah Saldana said neither Obama administration policy nor federal law required her agency to detain Edwin Mejia, who arrived in the U.S. illegally as part of the surge of unaccompanied children from Central America, after he was charged with vehicular homicide in Nebraska.
Still, she said her officers should have taken the initiative to detain him of their own volition and that she has notified all of her bureaus nationwide to do a better job of evaluating people they're called to detain.
Mr. Mejia stands accused of a drunken-driving accident this year that killed a young Iowa woman in Omaha — but federal immigration agents never showed up to collect him. After he posted bond with local authorities, he absconded.
"After further review, we believe that further enforcement action would have served an important federal interest in this case," Ms. Saldana said in a letter to Sen. Ben Sasse, Nebraska Republican, which the senator released Monday.
ICE said it first encountered Mr. Mejia, who also goes by the first name Eswin, at the border in Arizona in May 2013. He was a 16-year-old at the time. The Border Patrol, acting under President Obama's interpretation of the law, admitted Mr. Mejia and turned him over to social services, then eventually sent him to live with his brother in the U.S.
Ms. Saldana did not say whether the brother was in the U.S. legally.
In January, police say, Mr. Mejia was street racing while drunk when he struck the vehicle driven by Sarah Root, 21. She died as a result of her injuries.
Mr. Mejia posted bond on the homicide charge, and ICE officers did not come pick him up for detention, allowing him to disappear into the shadows.
Now ICE is scrambling to try to find him. Ms. Saldana said her agency has asked Honduran officials to see if he shows up back there.
Mr. Sasse was not satisfied. He called Ms. Saldana's response "an embarrassment" to her agency and elevated the issue to Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, demanding to know who specifically was responsible for deciding not to send officers to pick up Mr. Mejia.
"Why did ICE decline to detain Mr. Mejia, despite several requests to do so by the Douglas County Police Department? Were each of these requests denied on a case-by-case basis?" Mr. Sasse said in his letter to Mr. Johnson.
Ms. Saldana, in her letter to Mr. Sasse, said being charged with vehicular homicide wasn't enough to make Mr. Mejia a priority under standards set by Mr. Obama and Mr. Johnson in 2014.
In fact, even if he were convicted of the charge, ICE still wouldn't have to hold him, Ms. Saldana said.
"Even if he were convicted of the offense, motor vehicle homicide — driving under the influence, the conviction would not constitute a crime of violence under the immigration laws, and consequently, would not constitute an aggravated felony," she wrote. "The conviction would not render him subject to mandatory detention, nor would it significantly impact his eligibility to apply for relief or protection from removal."
At a Senate hearing last month, Ms. Saldana had said her officers didn't come to collect Mr. Mejia because Ms. Root was still alive, so the case didn't rise to their priorities. Her letter Monday, however, says that even though she later died, her agents wouldn't have necessarily considered Mr. Mejia a priority.
Under pressure from activists who said the number of deportations was too high, Mr. Obama and Mr. Johnson in 2014 announced a policy of deporting only those with the most serious criminal records.
Those policies mean that more than 9 million of the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the U.S. have little fear of being kicked out.
Mr. Mejia, however, was already facing deportation under his unaccompanied minor case, though that proceeding has dragged on. His court appearance was slated for later this month — nearly three years after he first entered the U.S.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/apr/4/vehicular-homicide-not-enough-detain-illegal-immig/
END
Friday, April 1, 2016
AZMEX SPECIAL 1-4-16
AZMEX SPECIAL 1 APR 2016
Note: Could not be a more appropriate day for this one. Video at link (spanish)
Suspected smugglers caught on video scaling Arizona-Mexico border fence
KTAR.COM
April 1, 2016 @ 12:44 pm
http://ktar.com/story/993498/suspected-smugglers-caught-on-video-scaling-arizona-mexico-border-fence/
TUCSON, Ariz. — A Mexican journalist got some unusual footage when she spotted two suspected drug smugglers scaling a tall border fence from Mexico into Arizona and then promptly climbing back after they realized they were being filmed.
Journalist Carolina Rocha of Azteca Noticias in Mexico City was in Nogales, Arizona, reporting on the U.S. Border Patrol's use of force March 16 when she spotted two young men in black t-shirts and jeans climbing down the fence in daylight.
Footage — which is above but is in Spanish — showed them carrying large backpacks that were likely holding drugs, walking while hunched over and then hiding behind some bushes and talking on what appears to be a phone before realizing the camera was recording.
"Don't record," one of the men says.
But Rocha was already rolling and not willing to stop. She told the men she was just doing her job.
"It was shocking. This is happening in front of me? And we didn't' stop recording," Rocha said in Spanish during an interview with The Associated Press.
Rocha said she did not feel endangered by the smugglers, but only after the reality of what she had seen sunk in.
The cameras rolled for about three minutes before the men climbed back up the fence and returned to Mexico without delivering the suspected drugs.
Rocha said she was stunned at how quickly they scaled the fence, which is over 20 feet high. The men were gone within seconds.
"It really was amazing," she said.
She was also struck by the fact that there were three U.S. Border Patrol trucks within yards of the incident. No agents approached the men.
Border Patrol spokesman Mark Landess said it's not uncommon for smugglers to scale the steel fence, especially around Nogales, which is a busy drug smuggling corridor.
Landess said it's impossible to know why the agents didn't respond or whether they even saw the men.
"They might be waiting for something else to happen. There's no way to make an educated comment on that," Landess said.
In a statement sent to KTAR News, John Lawson, a Border Patrol official who oversees operations in Arizona, said agents had "positioned themselves in locations to make enforcement actions safer for all parties involved."
The agency also said it could not authenticate the news video, but the alleged smugglers were caught on its cameras.
end
Note: Could not be a more appropriate day for this one. Video at link (spanish)
Suspected smugglers caught on video scaling Arizona-Mexico border fence
KTAR.COM
April 1, 2016 @ 12:44 pm
http://ktar.com/story/993498/suspected-smugglers-caught-on-video-scaling-arizona-mexico-border-fence/
TUCSON, Ariz. — A Mexican journalist got some unusual footage when she spotted two suspected drug smugglers scaling a tall border fence from Mexico into Arizona and then promptly climbing back after they realized they were being filmed.
Journalist Carolina Rocha of Azteca Noticias in Mexico City was in Nogales, Arizona, reporting on the U.S. Border Patrol's use of force March 16 when she spotted two young men in black t-shirts and jeans climbing down the fence in daylight.
Footage — which is above but is in Spanish — showed them carrying large backpacks that were likely holding drugs, walking while hunched over and then hiding behind some bushes and talking on what appears to be a phone before realizing the camera was recording.
"Don't record," one of the men says.
But Rocha was already rolling and not willing to stop. She told the men she was just doing her job.
"It was shocking. This is happening in front of me? And we didn't' stop recording," Rocha said in Spanish during an interview with The Associated Press.
Rocha said she did not feel endangered by the smugglers, but only after the reality of what she had seen sunk in.
The cameras rolled for about three minutes before the men climbed back up the fence and returned to Mexico without delivering the suspected drugs.
Rocha said she was stunned at how quickly they scaled the fence, which is over 20 feet high. The men were gone within seconds.
"It really was amazing," she said.
She was also struck by the fact that there were three U.S. Border Patrol trucks within yards of the incident. No agents approached the men.
Border Patrol spokesman Mark Landess said it's not uncommon for smugglers to scale the steel fence, especially around Nogales, which is a busy drug smuggling corridor.
Landess said it's impossible to know why the agents didn't respond or whether they even saw the men.
"They might be waiting for something else to happen. There's no way to make an educated comment on that," Landess said.
In a statement sent to KTAR News, John Lawson, a Border Patrol official who oversees operations in Arizona, said agents had "positioned themselves in locations to make enforcement actions safer for all parties involved."
The agency also said it could not authenticate the news video, but the alleged smugglers were caught on its cameras.
end
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