Saturday, June 18, 2016

AZMEX EXTRA 2-6-16

AZMEX EXTRA 2 JUN 2016


FBI: Phoenix bust yields guns, 18 pounds of meth, thousands of bullets
SHARE STORY BY KTAR.COM |
June 2, 2016 @ 12:39 pm
http://ktar.com/story/1099368/fbi-phoenix-bust-yields-guns-18-pounds-of-meth-thousands-of-bullets/

(Federal Bureau of Investigation Photo)

PHOENIX — A bust in the Phoenix area resulted in the seizure of guns, 18 pounds of methamphetamine and thousands of rounds of ammunition, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said.

In a release, the FBI said it seized three guns, 11,000 rounds of 7.62 mm ammunition and 4,000 rounds of 9 mm ammunition.

The FBI also said it arrested seven people.

The agency did not disclose the location of the bust or the names of the suspects.

The bust was part of the Safe Streets initiative, a multi-agency effort aimed at curbing street gang and drug-related violence.

The FBI said the Phoenix Police Department and Arizona Department of Public Safety assisted in the bust.

Other agencies — United States Border Patrol, Arizona Department of Corrections and Chandler Police Department — also assist the FBI in making busts.

END

Friday, June 17, 2016

AZMEX I3 SPECIAL 16-6-16

AZMEX I3 SPECIAL 16 JUN 2016

Note: Cajeme, Sonora

They help 26 African migrants
After a breakdown of the bus they were traveling;

DOCUMENTATION PRESENTED

15 / Jun / 2016
CAMPOS-RUBIO Alfonso
http://www.nuevodia.com.mx/Nota.aspx?p=14228

CAJEME.-

As a result of the breakdown of the bus where they were traveling to Tijuana, 26 Africans and thirteen from the State of Chiapas, they were aided by elements of the Preventive Police and Municipal Transit and taken to a shelter where they were given food and water, in addition to carrying two children to hospital for Children and Women for care for dehydration, said Antonio Gutierrez Lugo.

The general commissioner of the local authority added that this situation occurred in the four-lane highway to the south entrance of Ciudad Obregon, where the natives of the Congo and Ivory Coast, and the State of Chiapas, were transferred to hostel.

Also, this humanitarian action elements of the Mexican Red Cross and Municipal Civil Protection joined and be given a view of the delegation of the National Migration Institute, whose officers after reviewing their documents, allowed continue their journey to the border town, where they had planned to enter the United States.

Later, after food, bread, water and popsicles to mitigate the high temperatures recorded in the region, they were taken to the bus station for other public transportation and thus reach their original destination, Lugo Gutiérrez added.

end




AUXILIAN A 26 MIGRANTES AFRICANOS
TRAS DESCOMPOSTURA EN EL CAMIÓN EN EL QUE VIAJABAN; PRESENTAN DOCUMENTACIÓN EN REGLA
15/Jun/2016
Alfonso CAMPOS-RUBIO
http://www.nuevodia.com.mx/Nota.aspx?p=14228

CAJEME.-

Como resultado de la descompostura del autobús donde viajaban rumbo a Tijuana, 26 africanos y trece chiapanecos, fueron auxiliados por elementos de la Policía Preventiva y Tránsito Municipal, trasladándoseles a un albergue donde se les suministró agua y alimentos, además de llevar a dos menores al Hospital del Niño y la Mujer para su atención por presentar deshidratación, informó Antonio Gutiérrez Lugo.

El comisario general de la corporación local agregó que dicha situación se presentó en la carretera de Cuatro Carriles, a la entrada Sur de Ciudad Obregón, de donde los oriundos de El Congo y Costa de Marfil, así como del Estado de Chiapas, fueron trasladados al albergue.

Asimismo, a dicha acción humanitaria se sumaron los elementos de la Cruz Roja Mexicana y Protección Civil Municipal, dándosele vista a la delegación del Instituto Nacional de Migración, cuyos oficiales tras revisar los documentos que portaban permitieron siguieran su viaje a la fronteriza población, por donde tenían planeado ingresar a la Unión Americana.

Posteriormente y tras proporcionárseles comida, pan, agua y paletas de hielo para mitigar las altas temperaturas que se registran en la región, fueron llevados a la Central de Autobuses para que abordaran otro transporte colectivo de pasaje y de esa forma llegar a su destino original, añadió Gutiérrez Lugo.

END

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

AZMEX UPDATE 14-6-16

AZMEX UPDATE 14 JUN 2016

Note: Local interest mostly

Comment: A. Don't believe it.
B. "there is money in Mexico for investment in Arizona" But they won't invest in Mexico? Why?
C. Legal immigrants, of which there are many, are not "terrorized" and are welcome.
D. Mexicans coming to visit and shop are not "terrorized" and are welcome.
E. Would he be satisfied if we adopt Mexico's immigration laws?
fin


SB 1070 damages Arizona, Mexico economic relations
SHARE STORY BY TAYLOR KINNERUP |
June 14, 2016 @ 9:48 am

http://ktar.com/story/1116751/sb-1070-damages-arizona-mexico-economic-relations/

The Mexican Consul General has declared that despite efforts by Arizona officials to improve the relationship between Arizona and Mexico, Senate Bill 1070 did irreparable economic damage.

In an interview with the Phoenix Business Journal, Mexican Consul General Roberto Rodriguez Hernandez said that Arizona is still losing money because of the aftermath of SB 1070.

The bill allows police to determine the immigration status of someone arrested or detained when there is "reasonable suspicion" they are not in the U.S. legally.

Rodriguez described the bill as "social terrorism."

"It terrorized people with the threat of what it could do as opposed to actually having any real effect," he said. "In the eyes of the world, Arizona appeared to be a place of racism and discrimination," he said of what he observed on his own and heard about from his peers.

Since 2012, Rodriguez has worked with Arizona officials such as Gov. Doug Ducey to work on improving the economic relationship between Arizona and Mexico, the largest consumer of Arizona-made goods.

"Entrepreneurship increases opportunities, Gov. Ducey and Mayor Stanton understand this," he said. "We are seeing better opportunities, but there is more to be done to really show that Arizona wants to open opportunities to more people."

Despite the efforts that have been extended, there is still a large gap that needs to be filled.

"Arizona's image is getting better, but there is money in Mexico for investment in Arizona, and the relationship needs to be improved to access those funds."

Rodriguez also commented on the difficulty undocumented immigrants face when it comes to obtaining licenses and getting jobs.

"When people have jobs, there is less demand for social services," he said. "There are also more retail purchases of new and used cars and more."

In an effort to build and restore relations with the neighboring nation, Gov. Ducey is positioning the Arizona Mexico Commission to create the opportunity for more business, job and market growth.

END

Tuesday, June 14, 2016

AZMEX UPDATE 3-6-16

AZMEX UPDATE 3 JUN 2016


Memorial Day operation leads to arrest of 2 scouts, 1 charged with assault
Wednesday, June 1st 2016, 5:55 pm MST
By Elizabeth Walton, Digital Content ProducerCONNECT

http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/story/32118511/memorial-day-operation-leads-to-arrest-of-2-scouts-1-charged-with-assault

Gear seized during a Memorial Day operation. (Source: Customs and Border Protection, Arizona)
PHOTOS: KOLD News 13 June Mugshots
CASA GRANDE, AZ (Tucson News Now) -

During a recent operation on Memorial Day, Border Patrol agents arrested two scouts, after one assaulted a BP agent.

It began at 5:30 a.m. on Sunday, May 29, when BP agents with the Mountain team at the Casa Grande Station encountered two scouts during an operation geared toward an observation post in the Sawtooth Mountain Range, just outside Casa Grande. These scouts, according to CBP officials are often hired by criminal organizations to work from outposts, high up to guide human and narcotic smugglers.

According to a recent release, two BP agents had previously been assaulted by scouts in the last two months.

The third attack occurred on May 29, after BP agents encountered the two scouts. One scout assaulted an agent while trying to get away and down the mountain. According to the release a brief struggle ensued and the agent used pepper spray to subdue the man. He was identified as a Mexican national, and has been charged with assault on a federal officer, as well as attempt and conspiracy. This charge is often used to prosecute these scouts, according to the release.

A second scout was arrested and faces the same charges, but CBP officials say this second scout has an active felony warrant for homicide in Mexico.

In addition to the two arrests, BP agents seized four solar panels, two pairs of binoculars, eight cell phones, two radios and two radio chargers at the observation post.

In fiscal year 2015, Tucson Sector agents were assaulted 87 times, this amounts to 20 percent of all assaults on BP agents in the U.S.

end




Seven undocumented immigrants, including 3 children removed from car trunks by Border Patrol
Mac Colson
7:36 PM, Jun 2, 2016
3 hours ago
http://www.kgun9.com/news/local-news/seven-undocumented-immigrants-including-3-children-removed-from-car-trunks-by-border-patrol

TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - Border Patrol agents removed a total of 7 undocumented immigrants, including 3 children, from hot car trunks on Wednesday night at the I-19 checkpoint.

In two separate incidents agents thwarted smuggling attempts.

At 5:45 p.m., agents stopped a white four-door sedan for a secondary inspection. Agents discovered three people in the trunk during the vehicle search.

The subjects all identified as Mexican nationals, including a 16-year-old juvenile, and were taken into custody.

The driver, a United States citizen, was arrested and is pending criminal charges.

Agents stopped a white Pontiac sedan for a secondary inspection less than an hour later.

A search of the car revealed four undocumented aliens from Guatemala, including two under the age of 14, hiding in the trunk.

The subjects were taken into custody and the driver of the vehicle was arrested.

Both vehicles did not have emergency releases inside their trunks and lacked ventilation according to a Customs and Border Protection release.

The inside temperature of closed trunks can get in excess of 125 degrees with temperatures reaching triple digits during Arizona's summer months.

"This is another example of the callous disregard for life indicative of criminal organizations," Chief Patrol Agent Paul Beeson said. "If not for the actions of these Border Patrol agents, seven people including three children could have easily lost their lives at the hands of unscrupulous smugglers."

end

Monday, June 13, 2016

AZMEX UPDATE 11-6-16

AZMEX UPDATE 11 JUN 2016

Note: Local interest mostly.



GOVERNOR PAVLOVICH DELIVERY OF 98 PATROL VEHICLES TO THE PESP
10 / Jun / 2016
http://www.nuevodia.com.mx/Nota.aspx?p=14051

Hermosillo, Sonora, .-

Governor Claudia Pavlovich gave 98 patrols to the State Police Public Safety, bringing the number of units of that corporation doubled from when she took office.

Care for the units and give them the proper use Governor Claudia Pavlovich Claudia asked managers and police officers.

"They are very aware of the places where the problems are; not want to see the patrols rolling along the boulevards of cities, I want to see them where people need them, do not want simulations, "she said before military authorities of the three levels of government and Juan Carlos Solis Lopez, President of the Committee for Security.

The Secretary of Public Security, Adolfo Garcia Morales, said that 35 of these units were active ahead of the official release, used for days by agents of the PESP in Hermosillo.

She recalled that when she assumed the governorship Claudia Pavlovich, at Hector Espino Stadium, where the delivery is made, were parked 76 patrol vehicles of the 119 with which it had at that time, as they had no gasoline.

In the first three months of government of Claudia Pavlovich Arellano, said Garcia Morales, it was possible to operate 103 of the 119 units and eight months of assuming that position, the number of patrols PESP doubles.

Security is an issue not only patrol, pointed out Governor Claudia Pavlovich, "it is a tool for the job, but I also know that we must start well with an excellent well equipped corporation".

He noted that in addition to meeting the commitment to provide security to citizens who are looking for well-equipped police and who are proud to be part of the corporation that protects sonorenses families.

The units, whose keys the Director of the PESP, Alonso Ulises Mendez Manuell-Gómez, received are: 51 pick up for the Unit Periciales, 11 armored tactical vehicles for the Special Forces Unit, 32 patrols Unit Near Citizen and four sedans for the Research Unit.

END





Note: And Then We Have this one. BTW, never any apologies for US Citizens killed by drug & human traffickers and illegals.


SRE regrets death of Mexican migrant by firearm in Arizona
The government of Mexico asked the United States a transparent investigation of the facts and determine responsibilities

EFE 10/06/2016 22:02

http://www.excelsior.com.mx/nacional/2016/06/10/1098015

MEXICO CITY

The Government of Mexico "deeply regrets" the incident near Yuma, Arizona, United States in which a person diof Mexican nationality was shot, today informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE).

He also added, the government "expresses its sincere condolences to the relatives of the deceased".

The Foreign Ministry said in a bulletin that "the embassy in Washington and consulate in Yuma will do timely follow up the case and requested a transparent, impartial and prompt investigation to clarify the facts and determine responsibilities".

Mexico has repeatedly pointed to it that the use of lethal force in immigration control tasks and border security should be the last resort, besides being proportional to the circumstances of each situation, "he said.

According to the text, Mexico "reaffirms its commitment to continue promoting concerted action to reduce, prevent and investigate incidents of this nature actions," while "continue to provide consular assistance and protection to Mexicans in the United States, regardless of their immigration status. "

The statement refers SRE that the event occurred on Thursday June 9, although the the US Border Patrol report indicates that occurred Wednesday evening near the town of Somerton.

The Corporation reported today that an illegal immigrant who crossed the border illegally in Arizona died as a result of a shot fired by a Border Patrol agent during a struggle in which the immigrant attacked the officer.

According to the report, the incident occurred when the officer tried to arrest the individual who attacked him causing serious injuries, before which the agent discharged his weapon to "fear for his life."

During detention, the subject was able to grab the radio and the steel baton with which he began hitting him in the head as he tried to pull the gun from the holster, "the Border Patrol said in a statement.

Both were transported to Yuma Regional Medical Center in Arizona, where they could not resuscitate the immigrant.

The agent, multiple contusions and lacerations to the head, face and torso, has been placed on administrative leave while the corporation conducts an investigation of the case.

end





ENTREGA GOBERNADORA PAVLOVICH 98 PATRULLAS
A LA POLICÍA ESTATAL DE SEGURIDAD PÚBLICA
10/Jun/2016
http://www.nuevodia.com.mx/Nota.aspx?p=14051

Hermosillo, Sonora,.-

La Gobernadora Claudia Pavlovich entregó 98 patrullas a la Policía Estatal de Seguridad Pública, con lo cual se duplica el número de unidades de esa corporación respecto a las disponibles cuando ella asumió el cargo.

Cuidar las unidades y darles el uso adecuado pidió la Gobernadora Claudia Pavlovich a directivos y agentes policiacos.

"Que estén muy pendientes de los lugares dónde están los problemas; no quiero ver las patrullas paseándose por los bulevares de las ciudades, quiero verlos donde la gente los necesita, no quiero simulaciones", subrayó ante autoridades militares, de los tres niveles de gobierno y Juan Carlos Solís López, Presidente del Comité Ciudadano de Seguridad.

El Secretario de Seguridad Pública, Adolfo García Morales, indicó que 35 de estas unidades se adelantaron a la entrega oficial, para utilizarse desde hace días por agentes de la PESP en Hermosillo.

Recordó que cuando asumió la gubernatura Claudia Pavlovich, en el estadio Héctor Espino, donde se realiza esta entrega, estaban estacionadas 76 patrullas de las 119 con que las que contaba en aquel momento la PESP, ya que no tenían gasolina para ser utilizadas en labores de la corporación.

En los primeros tres meses del gobierno de Claudia Pavlovich Arellano, subrayó García Morales, se logró operar 103 de las 119 unidades y, a ocho meses de asumir ese cargo, se duplica el número de patrullas de la PESP.

La seguridad es un tema no sólo de patrullas, puntualizó la Gobernadora Claudia Pavlovich, "es una herramienta para el trabajo, pero también sé que debemos empezar bien con una excelente corporación bien equipada".

Señaló que además de cumplir con el compromiso de brindar seguridad a los ciudadanos busca que estén bien equipados los policías y se sientan orgullosos de formar parte de la corporación que protege a las familias sonorenses.

La unidades, cuyas llaves recibió el Director de la PESP, Alonso Ulises Méndez Manuell-Gómez, son: 51 pick up para la Unidad de Operativos Periciales, 11 vehículos tácticos blindados para la Unidad de Fuerzas Especiales, 32 patrullas para la Unidad de Proximidad Ciudadana y cuatro vehículos sedán para la Unidad de Investigación.

END




Note: and then we have this one. BTW, never any apologies for US citizens killed by drug & human traffickers and illegals.


Lamenta SRE muerte de migrante mexicano por arma de fuego en Arizona
El gobierno de México solicita a Estados Unidos una investigación transparente de los hechos y deslindar responsabilidades

10/06/2016 22:02 EFE

http://www.excelsior.com.mx/nacional/2016/06/10/1098015

CIUDAD DE MÉXICO

El Gobierno de México "lamenta profundamente" el incidente ocurrido cerca de Yuma, Arizona, Estados Unidos en el que falleció una persona de nacionalidad mexicana por disparo de arma de fuego, informó hoy la Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (SRE).

Asimismo, añadió, el Gobierno "expresa sus sinceras condolencias a los familiares del fallecido".

La SRE indicó en un boletín que "la embajada en Washington y el consulado en Yuma han dado puntual seguimiento al caso y han solicitado una investigación transparente, imparcial y expedita para esclarecer los hechos y deslindar responsabilidades".

México ha señalado de manera reiterada que el uso de la fuerza letal en tareas de control migratorio y seguridad fronteriza debe ser el último recurso, además de ser proporcional a las circunstancias de cada situación", apuntó.

De acuerdo con el texto, México "reafirma su compromiso de continuar impulsando acciones concertadas para reducir, prevenir e investigar los incidentes de esta naturaleza", a la vez que "continuará ofreciendo asistencia y protección consular a los mexicanos en Estados Unidos, sin importar su condición migratoria".

El comunicado de la SRE refiere que el suceso se produjo el jueves 9 de junio, si bien el reporte de la Patrulla Fronteriza estadounidense indica que ocurrió el miércoles por la noche cerca de la localidad de Somerton.

La corporación informó hoy que un indocumentado que cruzó la frontera de manera ilegal en Arizona murió como consecuencia de un disparo efectuado por un agente de la Patrulla Fronteriza durante un forcejeo en el que el inmigrante atacó al oficial.

Según el reporte, los hechos ocurrieron cuando el oficial trató de arrestar al individuo y este lo atacó causándole graves heridas, ante lo que el agente descargó su arma al "temer por su vida".

Durante la detención, el sujeto pudo agarrar el radio del agente y el bastón desplegable de acero con el que comenzó a golpearlo en la cabeza, mientras trataba de sacar el arma de la funda", informó la Patrulla Fronteriza en un comunicado.

Ambos fueron transportados al Centro Médico Regional de Yuma, en Arizona, donde no pudieron reanimar al inmigrante.

El agente, que sufrió múltiples contusiones y laceraciones en la cabeza, la cara y el torso, ha sido puesto en licencia administrativa mientras que la corporación realiza una investigación del caso.

end

AZMEX I3 SPECIAL 10-6-16

AZMEX I3 SPECIAL 10 JUN 2016


Federal court won't revisit Arizona identity theft law ruling
ASSOCIATED PRESS |
June 10, 2016 @ 7:17 am

http://ktar.com/story/1111925/federal-court-wont-revisit-arizona-identity-theft-law-ruling/

PHOENIX — A federal appeals court has refused to reconsider its decision
reinstating Arizona identity theft laws that were used to charge hundreds of
immigrants accused of using fake or stolen IDs to get jobs.

A three-judge panel from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday
declined to review its May decision that threw out a preliminary injunction
stopping Arizona from enforcing the laws.

No judge on the full 9th Circuit wanted to grant a rehearing.

A lower court judge had said immigrant-rights advocates were likely to succeed
in claiming the laws were trumped by federal immigration law.

But the 9th Circuit said in its May decision that the laws have been used to go
after U.S. citizens, not just immigrants, so federal immigration law is not always a
factor.

END




EXCLUSIVE: Border Patrol Agent Brutally Attacked in Arizona — Alien Shot Dead
Arizona Border 3Breitbart Texas / Ildefonso Ortiz
by BRANDON DARBY10 Jun 20161,024

http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2016/06/10/sources-border-patrol-agent-attacked-illegal-alien-alien-shot-dead/

A Border Patrol agent was brutally attacked by an illegal alien in the Yuma Sector on the U.S.-Mexico border on the night of June 9 and the agent responded with deadly force and killed the illegal alien. Multiple sources operating under the umbrella of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) discussed the issue with Breitbart Texas on the condition of anonymity. The Border Patrol agency confirmed the incident to Breitbart Texas when called.

According to the sources, three men illegally entered the U.S. and crossed the Colorado River when they were detected. An lone Border Patrol agent responded and one of the three men attacked the agent. The alien grabbed for the agent's service weapon. In the process of the agent protecting his service weapon, the alien grabbed his radio and began beating the agent about the head. The alien also grabbed the agent's baton and used that to beat the agent as well.

The Border Patrol agent was left with head injuries and a severe laceration above his right eyebrow that required multiple stitches. The agent's hands were also swollen after the life-threatening attack from the alien. The agent responded with deadly force and the alien attacker is now dead.

The illegal alien did not have identification on his person and his identity and country of origin remains unknown, though our sources are confident the attacker was an illegal alien.

The other two illegal aliens are in the custody of U.S. Border Patrol.

END

Friday, June 10, 2016

AZMEX EXTRA 9-6-16

AZMEX EXTRA 9 JUN 2016

Note: "Lost" Thx to the good folks at Borderland Beat. http://www.borderlandbeat.com

Not to forget the couple thousand or possibly more weapons delivered directly to the drug cartels by the Obama regime. (F&F)
Also remember the many thousands of deserters from the Mexican armed forces, many bringing their weapons with them to their new cartel employers.
thx


Also of interest, a sample:
http://www.un-register.org/SmallArms/CountrySummary.aspx?type=0&CoI=US

Also: https://www.sipri.org




Thursday, June 9, 2016
Mexico's lost guns: 13,000 over 10 years; reported lost or stolen by police and other officials
Posted by DD republished from Mexico News Daily

http://www.borderlandbeat.com

Mexico News Daily | Wednesday, June 8, 2016

Apatzingan Self-defense force: armed with police weapons?

Police are having a hard time hanging on to their guns: at both state and federal levels police officers and officials in prosecutors' and attorney generals' offices have lost nearly 13,000 firearms since 2006.

The federal Attorney General's office reported the disappearance of 1,171 arms, the Federal Police 1,054, and 102 by the Center for Investigation and National Security (Cisen).

Members of the Federal Protection Service, responsible for the security of public officials, were best at hanging on to their weapons. They lost only 15.

The rest of the 12,878 missing guns, both handguns and rifles, were lost or stolen in all 32 states, but the majority disappeared in Mexico City, the State of México, Chihuahua, Guerrero and Jalisco. The last three represent regions of the country with strong a presence of established drug cartels and splinter groups.

The largest number of lost or stolen weapons was reported in Mexico City in 2009, when 800 arms went missing from local police stations. That was also the year in which the most guns vanished nationwide, a total of 2,081.

The data was obtained by the newspaper Milenio from the National Defense Secretariat through a freedom-of-information request.

Coincidentally, the Mexican government increased its imports of firearms by more than threefold in the first half of this decade. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri) reports that Mexico's arms imports grew by 331% between 2011 and 2015 when compared with the period 2006 to 2010.

Sipri attributed the sharp increase in imports to the war against drug cartels.

InSight Crime suggests the missing weapons were likely destined for the domestic black market and bought up by organized criminal networks. They might also have found their way into the hands of the armed vigilante groups operating in many parts of the country.

The crime research organization concluded that "the demand for guns has shot up parallel with the militarization of Mexico's so-called 'drug war,'" adding that the increase in weapons imports "shows that the Mexican government is arming up, not dialing it down."

Source: Milenio (sp)

Thursday, June 9, 2016

AZMEX I3 SPECIAL 9-6-16

AZMEX I3 SPECIAL 9 JUN 2016

Note: from UK Guardian



British firm aims to open immigration detention center near US-Mexico border
Billion-dollar company Serco has lobbied the US for more than a year in a push for detention contracts, sparking criticism from immigrant rights groups

The Obama administration's use of family detention centres that hold children and mothers has become one of the most contested elements of America's border protection program.

Oliver Laughland and Renée Feltz
Thursday 9 June 2016 06.00 EDT Last modified on Thursday 9 June 2016 06.01 EDT

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/jun/09/texas-mexico-detention-center-serco-obama-administration

The British security firm Serco has moved a step closer to entering the controversial but lucrative immigration detention market in the US, as the company successfully lobbied public officials in a small Texas county near the Mexico border to propose that the federal government open a family detention centre in the jurisdiction.

The billion-dollar company, implicated in numerous immigration detention centre scandals in the UK and Australia, has been lobbying the US government for more than a year in an effort to win detention contracts, sparking sustained criticism from immigrant rights groups.

The firm is now proposing that a shuttered nursing home in Jim Wells County, Texas, be reopened as a family detention centre, which could hold up to 600 detainees and would become the third privately managed centre in the United States.

The Obama administration's use of family detention centres that hold children and mothers has become one of the most contested elements of America's border protection program.

Serco representatives first approached officials in the county last month, as the company ramped up its lobbying efforts, following an open pitching invitation announced by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) in April. On Monday, following a closed-door session between Serco lobbyists and the county's five commissioners, the local government body voted to partner with Serco and pitch the proposal to Ice.

The company has employed a number of experienced lobbyists in America, including a former senior Ice staff member, Kate Mills, and has already listed a job opening for a communications and logistics staff member close to the proposed centre "in the event of a contract award".

Judge Pedro Trevino Jr, the presiding member of the Jim Wells commissioners court, told the Guardian that Serco indicated up to 200 local jobs could be created at the centre. The county, with just over 40,000 residents, has had a spike in unemployment following the decline of the oil and gas industry in the region with the poverty rate climbing to 20%, according to census data.

"People are most interested in the jobs it would create," said Trevino, of the county's reaction to the proposed deal, adding that county attorneys were continuing to research the proposal, wary of the controversy it could bring.

"We know family detention centres are highly controversial and we want to put all our ducks in a row and gather facts before we make our final decision."

Although Ice opened an "information" pitching round designed for "market research" purposes, it has not yet confirmed if it will move on to receive formal proposals from potential family detention contractors.

"There are several formalities that have to transpire with the [request for proposals] before we can begin to discuss," an Ice public affairs officer told the Guardian.

About 38,000 people were apprehended crossing the US-Mexico border in April alone, including more than 10,000 unaccompanied children and "family units", according to US Customs and Border Patrol. This is the highest number since a surge in arrivals in June 2014, and will add pressure to the already strained detention network.

Reports have also indicated that the Obama administration is planning raids that could lead to the detention and deportation of more Central American mothers and children who entered the country illegally.

Serco has operated the Yarl's Wood immigration removal centre in the UK since 2007 and endured a string of abuse allegations, including that members of staff sexually assaulted female detainees. In Australia, where Serco operates all of the country's mainland immigration detention facilities under a multibillion-dollar contract, the company has suffered sustained criticism after riots have broken out in centres on Christmas Island, dozens of detainees have self-harmed and others have made sexual assault allegations against staff.

"Their actual track record is very different to what they say to people here in the US," said Mohammad Abdollahi, director of advocacy for the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services not-for-profit group in Texas. "There is no 'right' way to detain families, but they have shown, around the world, everything that is wrong with how you do it."

"Serco has international experience of managing immigration facilities. We are committed to looking after all those in our care with trust and respect," said a US spokesman for the company in an emailed statement that confirmed Serco's presence in Jim Wells County.

The centre would be the corporation's first in the United States, completing a triangle of family detention centers in south Texas, where Geo Group operates the 679-bed Karnes County Residential Center, and Corrections Corporation of America runs the 2,400-bed Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley. The only family facility outside of the state is a 96-bed facility in Pennsylvania that is operated by Berks County under an agreement with Ice.

Most of the women and children held at the three facilities are seeking refugee status and asylum amid a humanitarian crisis in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.

Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services, which operated a pilot "alternative to detention" program last year, says it found that housing the families in a less restrictive setting was a more cost-effective way to ensure they attended their immigration court hearings.

"We saw that people seeking asylum have a huge stake in finishing the process that could give them a chance to potentially rebuild their life and live here in safety," said Brittney Nystrom, LIRS director for advocacy. "We are creating additional trauma and pouring money down the drain."

END

AZMEX UPDATE 9-6-16

AZMEX UPDATE 9 JUN 2016

Note: Apprehensions being "down" does not in any way mean the drug and human trafficking is down.
thx


Border ranchers with few options now have police radios
By ASTRID GALVAN Updated 14 min ago 0

http://azdailysun.com/news/state-and-regional/border-ranchers-with-few-options-now-have-police-radios/article_0da513a1-dac4-54e6-a912-2ee95172509f.html

Border ranchers with few options now have police radios
Astrid Galvan
Cattle rancher John Ladd holds his new radio issued by the Cochise County Sheriff's Department for use in cases of emergency near Naco, Ariz., about 10 miles of it sits on the international border on Thursday, June 9, 2016. Ladd says drug smugglers frequently cross through his land and have burglarized his home on several occasions. The radios were handed out to about 30 border ranchers so they could have faster communication with 911 dispatchers. (AP Photo/Astrid Galvan)

Border ranchers with few options now have police radios
Astrid Galvan

A sign from the Cochise County Sheriff's Department hangs in front of the San Jose Ranch, which shares 10 miles with the U.S.-Mexico border in southern Arizona near Naco, Ariz., on Thursday, June 9, 2016. Ranch owner John Ladd is one of about 30 border ranchers who received police radios from the Cochise County Sheriff's Department this week so that they could more easily communicate with 911 when they are in remote areas that have poor cell phone signal. The ranchers say that drug smugglers and other criminals frequently cross through their land, putting them in danger. (AP Photo/Astrid Galvan)

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Southern Arizona ranchers who often encounter drug smugglers and other dangers have a new way to get help in emergencies: sheriff-issued radios usually reserved for police that connect them directly to 911 dispatchers.

So far 31 ranchers along the Arizona-Mexico border have taken the new handheld radios issued by the Cochise County Sheriff's Office.

Sheriff Mark Dannels obtained them through private funding in an effort to improve safety along the rural areas that often lack strong cell phone coverage. He said the 2010 murder of rancher Rob Krentz led to increased security and more communication between ranchers and authorities. Authorities believe Krentz was fatally shot by drug smugglers.

"I don't think there's a better form of community policing out there than having them have a form of communication with us in their time of need," Dannels said.

The sheriff's office also has a team dedicated to patrolling ranch areas and an advisory group composed of law enforcement and ranchers.

John Ladd, whose family ranch sits along 10 miles of the international border, says the radios will come in handy when he's out in remote parts of his ranch.

Ladd said that the illegal immigration landscape has changed a lot in the past decade. He used to see hundreds of migrants on his land daily, but that number is down to nearly zero now. Instead, it's the drug smugglers and their lookouts who travel through his ranch. His house has been burglarized countless times, he says.

"If you live in the rural area, that's your big concern every day. You still have to realize that I can't just walk into my house anymore. I gotta look around and see what's going," Ladd said.

Peggy Davis, a rancher about 25 miles north of the border, says activity has also significantly decreased but that it's not uncommon for smugglers and others to cross through her family's cattle ranch near Tombstone.

"Sometimes we don't have cell service on areas of the ranch. I was just thrilled that we have other options," Davis said.

Human and drug smuggling in the Tucson Sector, which comprises most of the Arizona, have fallen significantly. Fiscal year 2011 saw over 123,000 migrant apprehensions; by 2015, that number had fallen to a little over 63,000.

But as traffic has gone down in Arizona, it's picked up in parts of Texas, which have seen huge increases in the number of migrants illegally crossing the border. The Rio Grande Valley Sector has seen a spike from nearly 60,000 apprehensions in fiscal year 2011 to more than 147,000 in the last fiscal year.

Border sheriffs in those areas say ranchers along the Texas and Mexico border have to be on alert at all times.

In Hudspeth County, Sheriff Arvin West says he has one officer who serves as rancher liaison to help with issues that affect landowners.

"(Ranchers) have learned to just kind of stay back and if somebody comes across with backpacks, to just let them go and not follow them," West said. "They still break into homes and stuff if the ranchers aren't around but typically the ranchers don't leave."

end

Thursday, June 2, 2016

AZMEX I3 SPECIAL 2-6-16

AZMEX I3 SPECIAL 2 JUN 2016

Note: some may question how to tell a "Afghan" from a "Pak", when they may be from the same tribe.
Also talk along the border that some DTO's seem to be not interested in endangering routes by bringing in people from the "special-interest countries." Others, of course, don't care.
thx



Smuggling network guided illegals from Middle East terror hotbeds to U.S. border

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/jun/2/smuggling-network-guided-illegal-immigrants-from-m/?page=all#pagebreak

A U.S. Border Patrol agent drives near the U.S.-Mexico border fence in Santa Teresa, N.M. (Associated Press)

By Stephen Dinan - The Washington Times - Thursday, June 2, 2016

A smuggling network has managed to sneak illegal immigrants from Middle Eastern terrorism hotbeds straight to the doorstep of the U.S., including helping one Afghan who authorities say was part of an attack plot in North America.

Immigration officials have identified at least a dozen Middle Eastern men smuggled into the Western Hemisphere by a Brazilian-based network that connected them with Mexicans who guided them to the U.S. border, according to internal government documents reviewed by The Washington Times.

Those smuggled included Palestinians, Pakistanis and the Afghan man who Homeland Security officials said had family ties to the Taliban and was "involved in a plot to conduct an attack in the U.S. and/or Canada." He is in custody, but The Times is withholding his name at the request of law enforcement to protect investigations.

Some of the men handled by the smuggling network were nabbed before they reached the U.S., but others made it into the country. The Afghan man was part of a group of six from "special-interest countries."

The group, guided by two Mexicans employed by the smuggling network, crawled under the border fence in Arizona late last year and made it about 15 miles north before being detected by border surveillance, according to the documents, which were obtained by Rep. Duncan Hunter, California Republican.

Law enforcement asked The Times to withhold the name of the smuggling network.

It's unclear whether the network succeeded in sneaking other "special interest" illegal immigrants by border officials, but the documents obtained by Mr. Hunter confirm fears of a pipeline that can get would-be illegal immigrants from terrorist hotbeds to the threshold of the U.S.

Just as troubling, the Border Patrol didn't immediately spot the Afghan man's terrorist ties because the database that agents first checked didn't list him. It wasn't until agents checked an FBI database that they learned the Afghan may be a danger, the documents say.

"It's disturbing, in so many ways," said Joe Kasper, Mr. Hunter's chief of staff. "The interdiction of this group … validates once again that the southern border is wide open to more than people looking to enter the U.S. illegally strictly for purposes of looking for work, as the administration wants us to believe. What's worse, federal databases weren't even synced and Border Patrol had no idea who they were arresting and the group was not considered a problem because none of them were considered a priority under the president's enforcement protocol. That's a major problem on its own, and it calls for DHS to figure out the problem — and fast."

Mr. Hunter wrote a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson this week demanding answers about the breakdowns in the process.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the chief agency charged with sniffing out smuggling networks, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which oversees the Border Patrol and initially failed to find the terrorist connections, declined to comment. Homeland Security, which oversees both agencies, didn't provide an answer either.

The group of six men nabbed inside the U.S. — the Afghan and five men identified as Pakistanis — all made asylum claims when they were eventually caught by the Border Patrol. Mr. Hunter said his understanding is that the five men from Pakistan were released based on those claims and have disappeared.

The government documents reviewed by The Times didn't say how much the smugglers charged but did detail some of their operation.

Would-be illegal immigrants were first identified by a contact in the Middle East, who reported them to the smuggling network in Brazil. That network then arranged their travel up South America and through Central America, where some of them were nabbed by U.S. allies.

In the case of the Afghan man with terrorist ties, he was smuggled from Brazil through Peru, then Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico.

He was caught near a ranch 15 miles into the U.S. after his group's movements were detected by one of the Border Patrol's trucks. He told agents his group had crawled under the border fence near Nogales.

In the documents obtained by Mr. Hunter, Homeland Security officials said they considered the case a victory because it showed how they can use apprehensions on the southwest border to trace smuggling networks back to their sources.

But the documents had worrying signs as well. When agents first ran the man through the Terrorist Screening Database, he didn't show up as a danger. Indeed, KNXV-TV in Arizona reported in November that authorities said "records checks revealed no derogatory information about the individuals."

That turns out not to be true, according to the documents. The Afghan man was listed in the FBI's Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment database as having suspect relations.

Mr. Hunter told Mr. Johnson that the discrepancy between the databases was troubling.

The government documents also said some of the special-interest aliens caught at the border were previously identified by authorities in other Latin American countries — but had different sets of biometric identifiers associated with them. That raised questions about whether those countries are sharing accurate information with the U.S.

Networks capable of smuggling potential terrorists have long been a concern, but the Obama administration tamped down those worries, arguing that the southwest border wasn't a likely route for operatives.

Still, evidence has mounted over the past couple of years, including a smuggling ring that sneaked four Turkish men with ties to a U.S.-designated terrorist group into the U.S. in 2014. They paid $8,000 apiece to be smuggled from Istanbul through Paris to Mexico City, where they were stashed in safe houses before being smuggled to the border.

At the time, Mr. Johnson said the men were part of a group fighting the Islamic State and questioned whether they should have even been designated as part of a terrorist group.

But behind the scenes Mr. Johnson's agents were at work trying to roll up smuggling rings under an action dubbed Operation Citadel.

Lev Kubiak, assistant director at ICE Homeland Security Investigations' international operations branch, testified to Congress this year that Operation Citadel resulted in 210 criminal arrests in 2015. One part of the effort, known as Operation Lucero, dismantled 14 human smuggling routes, including some operations designed to move people from the Eastern Hemisphere to Latin America and then into the U.S., he said.

END