AZMEX UPDATE 6-1-12

AZMEX UPDATE 6 JAN 2012
for locals mostly

Note: there has been an increase in body count in areas south & west
of Nogales last few days.
The relocation of el dos mil to Cd. Mexico may have contributed to
lower annual murder rate in town.

Report: Murders dropped sharply lst year in Nogales, Sonora
Murders dropped sharply in 2011

Nogales Sonora Mayor Jose Angel Hernandez Barajas, fourth from left,
and Police Chief Luis Manuel Lugo Duron, third from left, stand at
attention Wednesday during a memorial for police officers killed in
the line of duty. The city's deputy police chief, Raúl Suárez
Gabriel, and Sonora State Police Officer Faustino Gil Castelo were
killed last September.

Posted: Friday, January 6, 2012 8:53 am | Updated: 10:21 am, Fri Jan
6, 2012.
http://www.nogalesinternational.com/news/report-murders-dropped-
sharply-lst-year-in-nogales-sonora/
article_af808dd0-387e-11e1-8c34-001871e3ce6c.html

Report: Murders dropped sharply lst year in Nogales, Sonora
Nogales International

Murders in Nogales, Sonora dropped by approximately two-thirds in
2011, according to statistics attributed to the local police and
published in a leading Sonora daily.

The Hermosillo-based newspaper El Imparcial reported on Dec. 27 that
the Nogales Municipal Preventative and Transit Police had tallied 79
murders in 2011, down from the 226 it counted in 2010. Local media
outlets had put the 2010 death toll as high as 242.

The 79 murders would be the lowest number in the border city since
2007, when 52 were recorded, according to state police statistics.
The murder tolls for 2009 and 2008 were 130 and 116, respectively.

Despite the apparently dramatic reduction in killings, and the
continuing assumption that most murders involve score-settlings
between organized crime groups, the city suffered several killings
with widespread reverberations:

• Three student murders in less than two months sent hundreds of
marchers into the streets on May 27 to demand justice. The victims
included 17-year-old Sergio Alonso Hernández Verdugo, whose body was
pulled from a shallow grave in early April; Blanca Paola Montijo
Ulloa, 23, was found murdered on April 28 in a vacant lot; and
Xotchil Sofia Estrella Moroyoqui, 18, found dead on a roadside on May
24. In August, local police arrested three men and a woman in
connection with Montijo Ulloa's murder.

• In July, Juan Carlos "Peque" Navarro, a 21-year-old graduate of
Nogales High School and resident of Beck Street, was found wrapped in
a blanket on roadside in the upscale Colonia Kennedy neighborhood. He
had been shot once in the head and showed signs of torture.

• In September, Deputy Police Chief Raúl Suárez Gabriel, 35, and
Sonora State Police Officer Faustino Gil Castelo, 41, were found
dead. Nine suspects - eight men and a woman ranging in age from 21 to
46 - were later arrested for the murders and allegedly told
authorities they kidnapped the two policemen in the Luis Donaldo
Colosio neighborhood, took them to a nearby hotel, beat and killed
them, and then dumped the bodies at a hillside mine outside Imuris,
40 miles south of Nogales.

• According to the local newspaper Nuevo Dia, the most violent day
of the past year came on March 19, when a total of eight people were
found dead.

Other crimes

Citing data from the local police, El Imparcial reported declines in
a number of other violent crimes in Nogales, Sonora 2011. Including:

• Assaults, which reportedly fell from 689 in 2010 to 330 last year.

• Violent robberies, which dropped from 1, 010 in 2011 to 926 in
2010, and non-violent robberies, which fell from 767 to 654.

• Car thefts reportedly fell from 693 to 410, while the percentage
of recovered vehicles rose from 54 percent to 68 percent.

• Kidnappings dropped from 49 to 33, though the crime is often
unreported.

Some violent crimes increased in 2011, according to the El Imparcial
report. Those included rape, which rose from 16 reported cases in
2010 to 20 in 2011; and domestic violence, which increased from 202
cases to 223.

Mesa police identify suspect in carjacking
by Brennan Smith - Jan. 6, 2012 08:30 AM
The Arizona Republic-12 News Breaking News Team

Mesa police identified the man suspected in a carjacking on Thursday
night as a suspected gang member. Juan Carlos Soto-Hernandez is
suspected of using a black semi-automatic handgun to steal a red Jeep
Grand Cherokee from a woman near Recker and McLellan roads, Mesa
Police Department spokesman Ed Wessing said.

Officers tried to stop the Jeep near McKellips Road and the Loop 202,
but Soto-Hernandez failed to stop, Wessing said. Soto-Hernandez was
then followed onto the Beeline Highway by a Department of Public
Safety air unit and stop sticks were used to flatten the Jeep's
tires, but Soto-Hernandez refused to stop, Wessing said.

The chase led back to Mesa and Soto-Hernandez struck cars near
Country Club Drive and Loop 202 before police used a "pit maneuver,"
essentially a patrol car tapping the rear of a car, to stop the Jeep
near Country Club Drive and Eight Avenue.

Soto-Hernandez was arrested on suspicion of aggravated assaulted,
failure to yield and robbery, Wessing said.

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/mesa/articles/
2012/01/06/20120106mesa-police-identify-suspect-
carjacking.html#ixzz1iiAgb2Ve

Note: always abandoned

Published: 01/05/2012 11:19 By: Editorial LaCronica
Army found abandoned weapons in the Valley

In the barracks facilities was presented the weapons seized in the
Ejido B Agricultural Islands in the Mexicali Valley. Photo: la cronica.
http://www.lacronica.com/EdicionEnLinea/Notas/Noticias/
05012012/564685.aspx

Mexicali, Baja California (PH) A total of 13 useful weapons, more
than 600 rounds, 10 radio equipment, military uniforms and a jacket
with the words "Ministerial Police", were found yesterday around
22:00 hours in the B. Agricultural Islands Ejido

Personal of Motorized Cavalry Regiment 23 reported on this event for
military personnel patrolling the area, we found a late-model BMW
SUV, so that an inspection realized that inside were various weapons.

This truck was at the edge of an irrigation canal in this rural
setting, so proceeded to remove it to the military barracks
facilities to initiate investigations.

Details in the print edition.

Note: about 25 miles south of Nogales

Published: 04/01/2012 3:32 By: Editorial ElImparcial
In Magdalena were murdered three
Located the bodies of the victims on the edge of the road between
Magdalena de Kino and Cucurpe.
http://www.elimparcial.com/EdicionEnLinea/Notas/Policiaca/
04012012/564370.aspx

Hermosillo, Sonora (PH) Three unidentified men were found executed
with bullets yesterday morning and the victims were located on the
edge of the road between Magdalena de Kino and Cucurpe.

According to the report of the State Police Investigator (PEI) was at
7:40 pm yesterday, in the Magdalena-Cucurpe stretch of highway, where
they found the bodies of three male persons.

The three victims had wounds inflicted gunshot to the head and
according to investigations, the three men were deprived of life at
the site were located.

Personal expert services of the Attorney General of the State,
located at the crime scene several .40 caliber shell casings and a .380.

Evidence collected

The three people shot to death, dressed in black trousers were of
dark complexion and two of them were were wearing no shirt and white
sneakers.

Municipal officers came to the place and elements of the State Police
Investigator (PEI), who protect the area of ​​crime, while the
experts conducting the search and removal of evidence.
note; same old story, commit crimes in Mexico and flee to safety in
U.S.

Note: headed to sanctuary in U.S.?
Found decapitated
Details Posted on Wednesday, January 4, 2012 9:57
Written by Martin Alberto Mendoza
The alleged murderer left the head inside the car and hid the body

5 others are killed in Magdalena and Etchojoa

The decapitated body of a woman allegedly attacked with machete by an
individual who fled is fully identified, was found yesterday morning
in an area of ​​the Rio Yaqui, "Railroad Bridge", about three
miles east of Station Corral.

The victim was identified as Maria Emilia Valdez Mendoza "La Guera",
27, a resident of the Camelia Blanca and Governadora streets, in the
colony Beltrones.

Although initially the version that aired was domiciled at Paseo del
Monte # 237, Colonia Villa Bonita.

The gruesome discovery occurred shortly before 08:00 am in the
vicinity of an abandoned house where a few months ago ran a
rehabilitation center for people with drug addiction and alcoholism.

On one side of the building was parked a Chevrolet sedan, Chevy
Monza, 1998 model, red and license plates WBF 7251. ( AZ plate?)

On the passenger seat was found the severed head of the now deceased,
according to signs found at the crime scene, was killed in front of
the car and dragged about 30 feet into the left side.

She was in a gap of about one meter deep partially nude with
impressive injuries allegedly with the same machete in arms and
other body parts.

During the Municipal Police investigations established that the
alleged killer by the name Octavio Chavez Encinas, "el compaye" of 27
years of age,.

The man, who was allegedly held in the United States where he resided
several years, was considered too violent for their own relatives who
live about 150 yards from where the crime was committed.

That same version was spread that the woman came on Monday at eleven
o'clock on that site, presumably for buying fish there since the
place was selling that product.

Other accounts say that the now deceased had known and previously
visited that site when she was with her boyfriend, identified as Jose
Tabardillo, who yesterday was in Phoenix, Arizona.

Hence today knew her assailant and there was a relationship of
apparent friendship and both his mother and other relatives he is now
a fugitive from the law Maria Emilia was warned about not joking with
him and less that they will provide beer, as he is very violent .

However, on Monday after he came to the site, presumably began to
drink alcohol. Even at the site of the murder was found a broken beer
bottle-called "caguamas."

Relatives of "el Compaye" said yesterday at 1:00 in the morning was
the last time they saw them together. Presumably they had gone to buy
beer at a site until yesterday afternoon undetermined.

It was concluded that the murder occurred between two and four in the
morning, when everyone was asleep, because they never heard anything.

Encinas Chavez used a bicycle to flee towards Corral station where
yesterday was traced around without results

Not known if he went to the mountain or to the International road
into a vehicle that took him to some northern border of the entity to
evade justice.

In the place of discovery, elements of Expert Services of the
Attorney General of the State (PGJE) made the lifting of fingerprints
and other evidence as part of the judicial inquiries.

Staff also attended the Public Ministry of Common Law of sector three
to attest to the remains of the woman and ordered its removal to the
disposal of Forensic Medicine to the procedures of law.

Note: our outlaw buddies continue to keep up the price of ammo.

POLICIACA
Publicada: 06/01/2012 16:17 Por: Rubén A. Ruiz
raruiz@elimparcial.com
Logran aseguramiento de balas en frontera Sonora-Arizona
Un mexicano de 26 años fue sorprendido trasladando mil 900 balas de
diversos calibres
http://www.elimparcial.com/EdicionEnLinea/Notas/Policiaca/
06012012/564984.aspx

NOGALES, Sonora(PH)El aseguramiento de mil 900 balas, lograron
oficiales del Departamento de Aduanas y Protección de Fronteras (CBP,
por sus siglas en inglés) en una operación realizada en esta frontera.

Rob Daniels, oficial de información pública de CBP, comentó que el
evento se realizó en la garita Denis DeConcini durante la mañana de
ayer.

Todo ocurrió cuando oficiales comisionados a la revisión de
automovilistas que salen de la Unión Americana hacia México,
refirieron a un mexicano de 26 años para una segunda inspección.

El individuo conducía un pick up de la marca Chevrolet, donde
localizaron una maleta tipo deportiva en la zona de carga, donde
localizaron las municiones de calibres .9 milímetros y .223.

Las balas fueron incautadas y el individuo que las trasladaba
arrestado, quien quedó a disposición de personal del Departamento de
Inmigración y Control de Fronteras (ICE, por sus siglas en inglés).

AZMEX I3 6-1-12

AZMEX I3 6 JAN 2012

Note: drug running tactic

23 pulled from minivan in Gilbert after car chases in SE Valley
by Brennan Smith - Jan. 6, 2012 08:25 AM
The Arizona Republic-12 News Breaking News Team

Two car chases through Southeast Valley neighborhoods and Interstate
10 ended Friday morning after both cars were pulled over in separate
locations.

A DPS officer began following a stolen car on the westbound I-10 when
another car bumped the DPS car in an apparent attempt to draw
attention away from the stolen 2012 Dodge minivan, according to
Department of Public Safety.

The DPS officer continued following the stolen minivan and eventually
made a traffic stop along with several other DPS units near Warner
and McQueen roads in Gilbert, according to authorities.

Twenty-three people got out of the minivan and were detained by the
DPS officers.

The woman driver of the minivan was arrested on suspicion of human
smuggling and theft of a vehicle. The minivan was registered to a
rental car company out of Guadalupe.

The other car was stopped near Rural and Elliot roads in Tempe and
the two occupants also were detained, Drobnik said. The driver was
arrested on suspicion of aggravated assault and theft of a vehicle.

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/gilbert/articles/
2012/01/06/20120106gilbert-southeast-valley-car-chases-packed-minivan-
abrk.html#ixzz1ih3G68Ta

Border issues fair coming to Sahuarita on Jan. 13-14
Posted: Friday, January 6, 2012 8:49 am
http://www.nogalesinternational.com/news/border-issues-fair-coming-to-
sahuarita-on-jan/article_fe6c70d6-387d-11e1-b660-001871e3ce6c.html

Border issues fair coming to Sahuarita on Jan. 13-14 Green Valley
News Nogales International | 0 comments

Jason De Leon, a professor of anthropology at the University of
Michigan, will talk about a long-term study of the contemporary
migration of people from Northern Sonora to Southern Arizona at the
eighth annual Santa Cruz Valley Border Issues Concert and Fair on
Jan. 13-14.

Margo Cowan, a Pima County public defender and champion of migrants
rights for 25 years, also will speak.

The annual fair will be held at Good Shepherd United Church of
Christ, 17750 S. La Cañada, Sahuarita.

Entertainer/activist Holly Near, accompanied by John Bucchino, kicks
off the fair at 7 p.m. Jan. 13. Tickets for the concert are $20;
advance tickets available at the church.

Cost for the fair is $10. Attendees are asked to bring winter hats
and gloves, belts, and backpacks for those in the desert.

More information from the Rev. Randy Mayer, (520) 625-1375, or Shura
Wallin, (520) 399-1454.

Number of illegal crossing arrests at 43-year low
January 04, 2012 9:53 PM
BY JAMES GILBERT - SUN STAFF WRITER
http://www.yumasun.com/news/year-75708-yuma-border.html

The number of illegal border crossers arrested in the Yuma Sector
this fiscal year is at an all-time low, while there has also been a
decrease in the amount of marijuana, cocaine, heroin and
methamphetamines seized, according to recently released official
figures from the Border Patrol.

Yuma Sector agents apprehended 5,833 illegal crossers along its 126-
mile stretch of international border with Mexico during fiscal year
2011. Agent Spencer Tippets, of the Yuma Sector Public Affairs
Office, said the apprehension figures represent a 43-year low and 18
percent reduction from the previous year.

"It is more proof that we have operational control of the border,"
Tippets said. "There is no way to know what will happen from year to
year, but as Border Patrol agents we hope that each year we get
better and better at our jobs."

Tippets added that the last time apprehension figures were this low
was in 1968 when agents apprehended 6,004 would-be border crossers,
and there has been a reduction in apprehensions every year since
2005. Apprehensions do not necessarily depict the total number of
people illegally crossing the border, but the amount of people who
were actually caught.

Back in 2005, there were 138,000 arrests within the Yuma Sector, with
the Yuma Station being the busiest of all 146 Border Patrol stations.
Tippets said there has been a decrease in those arrests every year
except for fiscal year 2010, where there was a slight increase. There
were 7,116 arrests in 2010, 6,951 in 2009, 8,363 in 2008 and 37,992
in 2007.

Tippets said the Yuma Sector also saw decreases across the board in
the volume of marijuana, cocaine, heroin and methamphetamines seized
this recently completed fiscal year. Of these, he said, marijuana
remained the most seized with 31,109 pounds being confiscated — a 16
percent decrease compared with last fiscal year.

"We have seen a reduction in every type of drug we track. Drug
traffickers are still trying to smuggle their drugs, but we are still
catching them."

Tippets said the successes, not just from this year but from past
years, can be attributed to the dedicated efforts of Yuma Sector
agents, significant investments in technology, increased tactical
infrastructure and partnerships with local law enforcement agencies.

Some of those improvements over the years were a substantial increase
in personnel, deploying helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft on a
regular basis to support their ground surveillance, the addition of
vehicle and pedestrian fencing, lighting and all-weather patrol
roads, as well as receiving mobile surveillance systems, trucks with
radar and cameras that can scan an entire area.

Tippets added that rescue missions continued to focus on efforts to
preserve human life in the harsh desert terrain of the Yuma Sector.
Last fiscal year, Yuma Sector agents rescued seven people who were
stranded or lost and in need of medical care and helped in the
recovery of the remains of two who had died.

This figure, Tippets said, represents a 95 percent decrease from the
high mark of 40 recoveries during fiscal year 2006. There were no
reported deaths in the Yuma Sector last fiscal year.

Other highlights from fiscal year 2011 include the August
implementation of Operation Hardball, which has Border Patrol agents
assisting customs officers at the San Luis port of entry, and the
integrated Customs and Border Protection Citizens Academy.

The Yuma Sector, together with the San Luis port and the Yuma Air
Branch, hosted the first-ever integrated academy in which 20
community members received interactive demonstrations and firsthand
knowledge of the functions, roles and responsibilities of the
individual CBP components.

Tippets said the community members learned how those components work
together to establish a secure and safe border environment, as well
as improve the quality of life for affected communities throughout
Arizona.

Read more: http://www.yumasun.com/articles/year-75708-yuma-
border.html#ixzz1ibvT1da8

AZMEX EXTRA 6-1-12

AZMEX EXTRA 6 JAN 2011

Note: If memory serves, this one of the few times that perps and any
weapons recovered. Don't know yet if the firearms were on way to
Mexico as is often the case, or for the local home boys.

Search leads to arrest of suspects, guns recovered
Fri, 01/06/2012 - 00:01
Weapons found by authorities during a search at a Sierra Vista
residence on Wednesday are shown. (Photo submitted)
By Derek Jordan
Herald/Review
http://www.svherald.com/content/news/2012/01/06/242459

SIERRA VISTA — More than half of the guns stolen from a local
business have been recovered and one person has been arrested after
authorities served a search warrant at a Sierra Vista residence

Wednesday.
At 12:30 p.m. Thursday, the Cochise County Sheriff's Office announced
the arrest of Kurt Zinke, 40, on burglary charges in connection with
the theft of dozens of guns from the Mountain Trading Post.

You must be a premium member to read the rest of this story. To
become a member,

Three more arrests in gun burglary
Fri, 01/06/2012 - 13:04
Derek Jordan
The Sierra Vista Herald/Bisbee Daily Review
http://www.svherald.com/content/breaking-news/2012/01/06/242563

SIERRA VISTA — Three additional arrests have been made in connection
with the theft of dozens of guns from a Sierra Vista Business on New
Year's Day.

At about 12:30 p.m., the Cochise County Sheriff's Office announced
the arrests of George Ysidro Sperle, 44, of Sierra Vista, on charges
of burglary, theft, possession of stolen property and conspiracy,
Jeremy Eric Valenzuela, 25, of Sierra Vista, on charges of theft and
trafficking in stolen property and Blake Martinez, 19, of Tombstone,
on charges of possession of burglary tools, theft and possession of
stolen property.

Valenzuela was also held on four warrants for failure to appear.

Another man, Michael Lloyd Sprott, 30, is being sought by the
sheriff's office. Sprott has a previous address in Sierra Vista,
though investigators have received information that he may be in the
Tucson area, according to the sheriff's office.

Anyone with information on Sprott's whereabouts is asked to call the
Cochise County Sheriff's Office at 520-432-9500.

On Wednesday evening, 40-year-old Kurt Zinke was arrested on burglary
charges in connection with the theft of more than 60 handguns from
the Mountain Trading Post on 7th Street in Sierra Vista.

More arrests in Sierra Vista gun-theft case
Veronica M. Cruz, Arizona Daily Star Arizona Daily Star
| Posted: Friday, January 6, 2012 1:02

Three more people have been arrested in connection to a New Year's
Day weapons burglary in Sierra Vista.

George Ysidro Sperle, 44, of Sierra Vista was arrested on suspicion
of burglary, theft, possession of stolen property and conspiracy,
said Carol Capas a spokeswoman for the Cochise County Sheriff's
Department in a news release. Jeremy Eric Valenzuela, 25, of Sierra
Vista was arrested on suspicion of theft, trafficking in stolen
property and four failure to appear warrants. Tombstone resident,
Blake Martinez, 19, was arrested on suspicion of burglary, possession
of burglary tools, theft and stolen property.

On New Year's Day, 63 weapons were stolen from the Mountain Trading
Post in Sierra Vista, 49 of which have since been recovered, the
release said.

The first person arrested, Kurt Zinke, 40, was apprehended Wednesday
evening, the release said.

Deputies are still looking for one more suspect, Michael Lloyd
Sprott, 30, who may be in Tucson, the release said.

Read more: http://azstarnet.com/news/local/crime/more-arrests-in-
sierra-vista-gun-theft-case/article_b58881be-389d-11e1-
ae66-001871e3ce6c.html#ixzz1iiCBSNZs

AZMEX SPEC 6-1-12

AZMEX SPECIAL 6 JAN 2012

Note: young Ramses was fleeing to Mexico because he have been caught
with a load of dope.
As for the rocks, next time down on the border get a look at some of
the BP vehicles. BTW, rocks have been lethal since biblical times.

One year later, deadly shooting still under federal investigation
Ramses Barron Torres died from a gunshot wound on Jan. 5, 2011.
Posted: Friday, January 6, 2012 8:51 am |
Updated: 10:20 am, Fri Jan 6, 2012.
http://www.nogalesinternational.com/news/one-year-later-deadly-
shooting-still-under-federal-investigation/article_83539752-387e-11e1-
ab62-001871e3ce6c.html

One year later, deadly shooting still under federal investigation By
Jonathan Clark
Nogales International Nogales International | 0 comments

In the early morning hours of Jan. 5, 2011, a 17-year-old male
suffering from a gunshot wound was dropped off in front of the
Hospital General in Nogales, Sonora. At approximately 3 a.m., he was
pronounced dead.

It was soon revealed that the victim, Ramses Barron Torres of the
city's borderfront Buenos Aires neighborhood, had been shot by a U.S.
Border Patrol agent patrolling in an area below the Hudgins Street
turnaround on the east side of Nogales, Ariz.

Citing reports from witnesses, Sonoran officials said Barron Torres
had been climbing the border fence as he fled back into Mexico when
the agent shot him. However, a youth who claimed to have witnessed
the shooting told Radio XENY that Barron Torres was standing on the
Mexican side of the fence when he was shot. The FBI, which
investigated the shooting, said Border Patrol agents were attempting
to arrest suspected drug smugglers near the fence when bystanders
began throwing rocks at them. At that point, an agent fired at one of
the rock-throwers.

One year later, the public is no closer to knowing exactly what
happened that night at the border fence. The FBI has since completed
its investigation, but referred all questions to the U.S. Attorney's
Office, where spokesman Manuel Tarango this week said the shooting
remained "an open matter" and therefore could not be discussed.

Other border-related shooting cases in the local area have yielded
similarly opaque federal investigations.

Last May, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced that it had indicted
34-year-old Mexican national Manuel Osorio-Arellanes for the second-
degree murder of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry near Rio Rico on
Dec. 14, 2010. However, the names of Osorio-Arellanes' co-defendants
- including the alleged triggerman - were blacked out on the
indictment, and a federal judge quickly sealed the case from public
view.

On Nov. 16, 2010 a Border Patrol agent patrolling on horseback near
Walker Canyon west of Nogales shot a 30-year-old Sonora man in the
stomach after the man allegedly threatened him with a rock. The man,
who survived, told a lawyer that the agent had knocked him to the
ground with his horse before shooting him in the abdomen and
threatening to shoot him again in the head.

Tarango, the U.S. Attorney's Office spokesman, said the Walker Canyon
shooting also remains an open case.

Jim Calle, a lawyer who represents Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents
in the Local 2544 union, said the lack of information provided by
prosecutors in these types of cases is typical.

"Any time it goes to the U.S. Attorney's Office, I think it's fair to
say that it kind of becomes a black hole," said Calle, who said
prosecutors are often just as unwilling to share information with the
parties involved as with the public.

As for the slow pace of federal investigations, Calle noted the heavy
workload of federal prosecutors, and the potential need for a case to
be reviewed both at a local level and at the Department of Justice
headquarters.

Lack of closure

The long wait and lack of information can be difficult for victims'
families. Barron Torres' relatives could not immediately be reached
for comment, but Terry's family has expressed frustration with the
investigation into that murder - especially the lack of transparency
regarding weapons found at Terry's murder scene that were linked to a
botched ATF operation called Fast and Furious.

The lack of closure is also hard on Border Patrol agents who are
involved in deadly shooting cases, Calle said.

"It's traumatic for the agent, both in terms of the fact that they
took a life, but also because they understand that they are under
investigation, and that there's some chance that they could be
charged with some sort of offense," he said.

"I'm frequently hearing from agents who are asking me for updates,
but I have nothing to tell them, because the U.S. Attorney is
typically not going to tell me what the status of the case is."

Following the Barron Torres shooting last January, the Border Patrol,
citing agency policy, said the agent involved had been placed on
temporary administrative leave. With the U.S. Attorney's
investigation still open one year later, the NI asked if the agent
was still on leave or back in the field.

Mario Escalante, a spokesman for the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector,
said he could not comment due to the pending investigation.

AZFMEX F&F EXTRA 5-1-12

AZMEX F&F EXTRA 5 JAN 2012

Documents describe another gun probe
Jan. 5, 2012 05:06 PM
Associated Press

WASHINGTON -- In a probe of arms trafficking during the George W.
Bush administration, a federal prosecutor said it was wrong that law
enforcement agents had allowed hundreds of guns to go into Mexico and
into the hands of drug dealers, according to documents the Justice
Department turned over to Congress on Thursday.

The emailed comment by an assistant U.S. attorney in Arizona to a law
enforcement colleague in December 2008 focused on the tactic used in
Operation Wide Receiver, an investigation that began in early 2006.
The newly disclosed internal Justice Department documents show Wide
Receiver had many of the same problems that turned up more recently
in a separate, later probe called Operation Fast and Furious, which
is the focus of an inquiry by congressional Republicans.

The concerns about the earlier Wide Receiver probe that were
expressed in the internal Justice Department documents deal with the
law enforcement tactic of standing aside rather than arresting
"straw" buyers of illicitly purchased weapons in the hopes that
agents can follow the guns and straw buyers to major arms traffickers.

The tactic, known as, "letting guns walk," long has been prohibited
by Justice Department policy. But federal agents under both the Bush
and Obama administrations, nevertheless, turned to the tactic as a
response to long-running criticism that traditional department
policies have left arms-trafficking kingpins virtually untouched by
prosecutors.

In the more recent Fast and Furious investigation, focused on sales
at Phoenix-area gun shops, federal agents lost track of nearly 1,400
of the more than 2,000 weapons they were trying to track. Some of
those turned up later at crime scenes in Mexico and the United States.

The Wide Receiver investigation that began in early 2006 proceeded
and used the gun-walking tactic despite the concerns expressed by
some of the law enforcement personnel involved in it.

"I am no longer comfortable allowing additional firearms to 'walk,'
without a more defined purpose," a supervisor for the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Arizona wrote in a June
2007 email to a federal law enforcement official in Texas about
Operation Wide Receiver.

"I think it is wrong for us to allow 100s of guns to go into Mexico
to drug people knowing that is where they are going," Assistant U.S.
Attorney Serra Tsethlikai wrote in a Dec. 19, 2008, email to another
assistant U.S. attorney.

The probe languished at the Justice Department until the Obama
administration took office.

In an August 2009 email, an ATF agent said that a federal prosecutor
had a "moral dilemma" about Wide Receiver because the government had
allowed the targets of the investigation "to traffic 300+ firearms to
Mexico."

Under President Barack Obama, the Justice Department pursued the Wide
Receiver case and six defendants have pleaded guilty, two others who
were charged are fugitives and a third fugitive in the case was
recently arrested.

There was extensive discussion in the internal documents about the
desire to coordinate the Wide Receiver investigation with Mexican
authorities -- but little in the documents to indicate that
coordination actually took place.

Rep. Darrell Issa of California, the Republican who chairs the House
Oversight and Government Reform Committee that is investigating
Operation Fast and Furious, has said coordination with the Mexican
government on Wide Receiver was "just the opposite" of the manner in
which Fast and Furious was conducted, with Mexican authorities in the
loop on Wide Receiver but out of the information loop on Fast and
Furious.

"It is deeply discouraging that top Justice officials knew such
details about problems in Operation Wide Receiver yet were still so
quick to dismiss warnings from whistle-blowers" in Operation Fast and
Furious, Issa said of the newly released documents.

Another Arizona-based gun-running probe, the Hernandez investigation,
was undertaken during the Bush administration after Wide Receiver.
Those agents made contact with Mexican authorities and arranged for
them to take over surveillance of a vehicle driven by suspected straw
purchasers after it crossed into Mexico with weapons purchased in
this country, but the Mexican agents claimed they never spotted the
vehicle.

Subsequently, ATF officials asked Bush administration attorney
general Michael Mukasey to lean on his Mexican counterpart to supply
better vetted, incorruptible agents for such operations. Mukasey has
declined to say whether he had any success or even whether he tried
to do that.

The Hernandez case was run by ATF's Phoenix office, which also later
handled Fast and Furious.

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/
2012/01/05/20120105documents-describe-another-gun-
probe.html#ixzz1idhKHGyk

AZMEX F&F EXTRA 3-1-12

AZMEX F&F EXTRA 3 JAN 2012

Note: why of course not. No spin here folks.

Sealing of Brian Terry murder case not likely part of cover-up,
experts say (updated)
Tim Steller, Arizona Daily Star
| Posted: Tuesday, January 3, 2012 4:13 pm |

This undated file photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border
Protection shows U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian A. Terry. The parents
of Terry, killed Dec. 14 northwest of Nogales, argued in a Aug. 1
court filing that they should be considered formal victims of Jaime
Avila. He is accused of buying AK-47s and other guns from stores in
the Phoenix area on behalf of organized crime groups in Mexico.

* Related: Indictment in Brian Terry killing

(Updated to included comment from former federal prosecutor John Leader)

The sealing of the case against the man suspected of murdering Brian
Terry unleashed last fall a new round of railing about the Justice
Department's handling of Operation Fast and Furious.

In fact, in a story Sunday, I included the sealing of the case as one
of five Justice Department acts that contributed to the perception of
a cover-up in Operation Fast and Furious.

But that doesn't mean the sealing really was intended to cover up
Justice misdeeds, just that some people took it that way. A veteran
Tucson defense attorney and two former federal prosecutors in the
Tucson office agreed, when I asked each separately Tuesday, that the
sealing was more likely due to events in the case than an attempt at
cover up.

(To recap for those not up-to-speed: when Terry, a U.S. Border Patrol
agent, was shot to death on Dec. 14 2010, one man was arrested at the
scene. He was charged with second-degree murder in the case, but told
investigators there were a total of five people in the crew that
fired at Terry and his fellow agents. The U.S. Attorney's Office
released its indictment in the case in May, and it's attached, but
later the case was sealed.)

Perhaps the most typical reason for sealing cases is to keep fugitive
defendants from knowing about the case, agreed former federal
prosecutors Sean Chapman and John Leader, and longtime federal-court
defense practitioner Walter Nash. None of them have a role in the
case against Terry's alleged killers.

"There are all sorts of different reasons to seal a case," Chapman
said. "The most common one is that there can be outstanding
defendants that haven't been arrested yet. The idea is that you don't
want to tip them off."

In the indictment, it appeared two names were blacked out, though the
names could be nicknames or other identifiers.

Nash said cases are being sealed increasingly frequently, though it's
still not routine. (I tried to find out the number of cases that were
being sealed back when I covered federal court around 2000, but I was
told, of course, that number was sealed!)

"When you seal the case, it raises a big red flag," Nash said. "When
I see a plea agreement sealed, I see 'cooperator.' "

Leader agreed that often cases are sealed to protect somebody who is
cooperating in an investigation. Even in a case like this in which
the defendant's name is known, that could come into play, Leader said.

"Sometimes, even if a guy's identity is known, the fact of his
cooperation may not be," he said.

Nash noted that the parties in the case can still follow the
pleadings in a case that has been sealed. But theoretically at least,
the fugitives are in the dark.

Another possible explanation for the sealing of the case is that it
had something to do with the transfer of the case from the federal
prosecutor's office in Tucson to the one in San Diego, Chapman said.

"I suspect there were some (office) politics involved," he said.

In any case, it's unlikely the case will be sealed forever.
Eventually, in a case this prominent, we'll know what's in that file,
and then we should have a very good idea why it was sealed.

Read more: http://azstarnet.com/news/blogs/senor-reporter/sealing-of-
brian-terry-murder-case-not-likely-part-of/
article_74e1668a-365e-11e1-8c54-001871e3ce6c.html#ixzz1iRgPJY7e

AZMEX UPDATE 3-1-12

AZMEX UPDATE 3 JAN 2012

Note: Happy Secure Border New Year
http://www.youtube.com/user/AZBorderDefenders?feature=digest_mon

Note: reading this brings a few things to concern here. Among them,
warnings a while back to local law enforcement not to be finding any
drugs off duty. Could this endanger other hunters? Interesting
comments on web page

2 Scottsdale men find 126 lbs. of pot in Sasabe
by Allie Seligman - Jan. 2, 2012 10:01 PM
The Republic | azcentral.com

Every year for two decades, Pierre Mondotte has spent a few days in
Sasabe hunting deer.

This year's trip ended unexpectedly, though, when he and a friend,
Anthony Piazza, stumbled upon 126 pounds of marijuana in the small
border town in Pima County.

The Scottsdale men were tracking a deer around opposite sides of a
mountain when Mondotte, 65, saw what he first thought was a body.

But stacked underneath a large piece of burlap he found seven bundles
of marijuana wrapped in tin foil and plastic. "I've been down there
for 20 years and I've never found anything like it," Mondotte said.

Night was falling and the men walked the 3 or 4 miles back to their
campsite. The next morning they came across a National Guard post and
alerted officials, they said.

At first the soldiers didn't seem too concerned, Piazza said. "They
didn't want to go at first. They didn't think it was anything," he said.

The pair led them to the drugs, though, and "all the sudden they're
loading their machine guns," Piazza, 48, said.

Andy Adame, spokesman for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection's
Joint Field Command, said the marijuana Mondotte and Piazza led
agents to is valued at $101,480.

Adame said usually agents, not citizens, find abandoned drugs. "But
it does happen every once in a while," he said.

Drugs are typically abandoned when smugglers think they are being
followed, Adame said.
"They think they're getting apprehended so they drop their stuff and
run," he said.

Agents usually find one, two or three bundles of marijuana at a time,
not seven like Mondotte and Piazza discovered, Adame said.

Mondotte said the soldiers he led to the drugs were "extremely
thankful."

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/community/scottsdale/articles/
2012/01/02/20120102scottsdale-men-find-126-lbs-pot-
sasabe.html#ixzz1iPWtq100

AZMEX UPDATE 1-1-12

AZMEX UPDATE 1 JAN 2012

Note: of interest mostly to gunnies, especially the second from
Nogales. "a proliferation of automatic weapons detonations"

Published: 01/01/2012 14:23 By: SUN
Stray bullets wounded two in Caborca ​​and AP
http://www.elimparcial.com/EdicionEnLinea/Notas/Noticias/
01012012/563908.aspx

Hermosillo, Sonora (SUN) Bullets "lost" from gunshots in the New Year
holiday left at least two people injured in different parts of the
state, said in a report the State Police Investigator.

In the town of Caborca, Consuelo Robles Tarin, 28 years old, who was
outside her home the night of December 31, was wounded in the left
shoulder, being hit by a stray bullet, which was apparently triggered
by a person who fired at the time of the New Year.

The injured told police that when she was in a convenience when she
suddenly felt a blow on the left shoulder, and he was taken to
General Hospital where she was treated.

In Agua Prieta, another person also was injured by a stray bullet
during New Year celebration after he was inside his home. The project
went through the tin roof of his house.

The victim, Juan Antonio Aguilar Morales, 42 years old, suffered a
wound in the right buttock while he was inside his home, located on
Calle 50 and Avenida 10, of the colony Centenario.

Posted January 2, 2012, 1:40 a.m.
Alarm hail of bullets
Activity reported a lot of shooting high powered rifles in various
areas of the city.
Many people reported explosions on the night of New Year
Nogales, Sonora - New Day
http://www.nuevodia.com.mx/estado/alarma-lluvia-de-balas/

Damage to roofs of homes, vehicles, hundreds of shell casings on the
streets and alleys of the city, was the result of the first few
minutes of the new year, when the detonation of the weapons was
constant and resonant in some sectors of the city.
A large number of reports to hotlines were receiving in 2012, when
residents of different areas made known to hear the thunder of high-
powered rifles, which coupled with the explosion of fireworks framed
the beginning of a new year.

For more than two hours and minutes, between 11:00 pm on 31 and well
past midnight on January first, a proliferation of automatic weapons
detonations and flashes in the sky was observed in a clear sign of
strength in armaments account with which organized crime in this
border in a disregard of authorities.
Various police corporations patrol remained in expectation only,
codes and lights on.
The constant wail of sirens was part of the night of 31 and early on
the first day of the year.
On streets and avenues were found a lot of shell casings that were
mostly collected by the neighbors, or children focusing at night or
early in the morning and went out to meet the new year.

In the same way it had knowledge of the seizure of a firearm in the
colony Villa Sonora, when residents reported shots in the sector, the
authorities found a subject triggering the gun several times,
although no information was officially announced that place in a
pistol seizure presumably even if the subject fled.

Injured by stray bullet
Monday January 2, 2012 11:33 Writing / ElDiario
Nogales
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/index.php?
option=com_content&view=article&id=20825:lesionada-por-bala-
perdida&catid=82:nogales&Itemid=198
A woman injured by stray bullet fire attempts, plus people arrested
for carrying firearms, driving offenses, shock, alcoholic breath, as
well as fights, including several families, was the balance left by
the celebrations for the arrival the New Year.

This, according to information provided by law enforcement agencies
and emergency rescue corps, which remained alert to the completion of
2011 and the arrival of 2012, mainly due to the explosions that
usually performed at this border, during the celebration.

The Red Cross, attended dozens of calls, including one in the Bella
Vista neighborhood, where a woman named Elizabeth Madrid, 29 years
old, was injured in her leg by a projectile from a firearm.
The woman was taken to General Hospital for medical care, where she
was diagnosed out of danger, the above around 12:10 pm and said the
bullet went through the roof of her house.
The institution said that the calls received were mainly due to
problems of people who were consuming alcohol.

In the case of Municipal Public Security reported that dozens of
calls were received, mainly by detonation of firearms, the foregoing
minutes before and minutes after 12 o'clock at night.
Among the incidents attended in the corporation, emphasizes a vehicle
that crashed into a wall, above the junction with Hills Road
International Yaqui and to conduct a review into the unit, found a .
40 pistol in the glove box.
Also reported that during the morning, three people were also
arrested with a firearm, which was turned over to the Federal Public
Ministry.
Municipal Public Security also reported that attended several calls
about fights and family disputes, also mentioned that they made the
arrest of three people driving offense, one of them to participate in
shock, and other people with alcoholic breath.
In the case of Fire "Gustavo L. Manriquez, "the commander, Manuel
Hernández Domínguez, reported that it took two calls during the
night of Saturday, both of Reform Street, that in the Del Rosario.

AZMEX WPN SPEC 31-12-11

AZMEX WEAPONS SPECIAL 31 DEC 2011

Note: interesting this one, no money, no weapons, and moved to
Tamaulipas?

Captured "El Ramy" arms supplier "El Chapo"
the Editor
December 31, 2011 · 5 Comments
Narcotics
http://www.proceso.com.mx/?p=293295

MEXICO, D.F. (approved) .- Ramiro Rendon Rivera, El Ramy, allegedly
linked to the manufacture and introduction into the country of guns
and ammunition, was arrested yesterday by Federal Police (PF) in
Culiacan, Sinaloa, said the federal Public Security Secretariat (SSP).

Reliance said in a statement that the detainee worked for the Pacific
cartel, and has begun a preliminary investigation in the Office of
Special Investigations into Organized Crime (OFDI).

The SSP said that Rendon Rivera, 45, was located near the boulevard
Félix Enrique Castro, Humaya Infonavit in the colony, where an
operation was performed to achieve his capture.

After his arrest, the feds took from him a cell phone, a wallet, two
credit cards, different documents, two sets of keys and 900 pesos in
national currency, said dependency.

He noted that pursuant to the warrant drawn by a judge in Criminal
Proceedings, El Ramy, a native of Sinaloa, was transferred to the
facilities of the Federal Social Rehabilitation Number Three
"Northeast" in the ejido Santa Adelaida, in Tamaulipas , which will
be available to the judicial authority.

Note: Updated Arms World news

Finland to Widen Missile Shipment Inquiry: Customs
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Published: 30 Dec 2011 10:50
http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=8701326&c=EUR&s=AIR

HELSINKI - Finland wants to widen an inquiry into the illegal transit
of 69 Patriot missiles through its territory aboard a regular
merchant vessel, Finnish customs said Dec. 30.

Two Ukrainians - the ship's captain and the first mate - remained in
Finland and were subject to a travel ban during the ongoing
investigation.

"Next week ... we will want to hear more suspects or persons of
interest in the case. It is possible there may be others of
interest," the head of the Finnish customs anti-crime unit, Petri
Lounatmaa, told AFP.

The surface-to-air missiles, produced by U.S. firm Raytheon, were
discovered last week on the British-registered Thor Liberty docked in
the southeastern Finnish port of Kotka and bound for the Chinese port
city of Shanghai, according to Finnish police. Finnish customs are
investigating the case as one of illegal export of defense material.

Lounatmaa said customs and police investigators had "been in contact
with several countries" and the information gathered would help them
"focus ... investigations in the right direction."

He declined to provide any details on the nature of the information
received, noting only that some of it had come in the form of
intelligence briefs.

More official information would be needed as evidence if the case
goes to criminal proceedings, he said.

Last week, a German defense ministry spokesman said the missiles came
from the German military and were destined for South Korea, not
China. He said it was a "legal sale on the basis of an accord between
two states at the government level" and that export authorizations
were in order.

However, a senior Finnish defense ministry official said Finland had
not received any transit license application for the missiles from
Germany.

On Dec. 26, Finnish transport safety officials cleared the Thor
Liberty to leave Finland, after the missiles and most of the cargo of
150 tons of explosives had been unloaded from the vessel.

However, the vessel remained grounded by the travel ban on its first
officers.

Capturan a "El Ramy", surtidor de armas de "El Chapo"
La Redacción
31 de diciembre de 2011 · 5 Comentarios
Narcotráfico
http://www.proceso.com.mx/?p=293295

MÉXICO, D.F. (apro).- Ramiro Rendón Rivera, El Ramy, presuntamente
vinculado con la fabricación e introducción al país de armas de fuego
y municiones, fue detenido ayer por la Policía Federal (PF) en
Culiacán, Sinaloa, informó la Secretaría de Seguridad Pública federal
(SSP).

La dependencia agregó en un comunicado que el detenido trabajaba para
el cártel del Pacífico, y que cuenta con una averiguación previa
iniciada en la Subprocuraduría de Investigación Especializada en
Delincuencia Organizada (Siedo).

La SSP explicó que Rendón Rivera, de 45 años, fue ubicado en las
inmediaciones del bulevar Enrique Félix Castro, en la colonia
Infonavit Humaya, donde se realizó un operativo para lograr su captura.

Tras ser detenido, los federales le aseguraron un teléfono celular,
una cartera, dos tarjetas bancarias, documentación diversa, dos
juegos de llaves y 900 pesos en moneda nacional, señaló la dependencia.

Indicó que en cumplimiento a la orden de aprehensión girada por un
juez en materia de Procesos Penales, El Ramy –originario de Sinaloa–
fue trasladado a las instalaciones del Centro Federal de Readaptación
Social Número Tres "Noreste" en el ejido Santa Adelaida, en
Tamaulipas, donde quedará a disposición de la autoridad judicial.

AZMEX EXTRA 2-1-12

AZMEX EXTRA 2 JAN 2012

Note: Never had any success getting ATF to discuss these cases with
us. There have been quite a few out this way over the last few
years. Don't have a count at hand.

Sheriff seeks clues after firearms stolen in Sierra Vista burglary
Mon, 01/02/2012 - 00:10
Dana Cole
The Sierra Vista Herald/Bisbee Daily Review
http://www.svherald.com/content/news/2012/01/02/241757

SIERRA VISTA – The Cochise County Sheriff's Office is requesting the
community's assistance in solving a burglary that occurred at a
Sierra Vista business sometime Sunday, between 1 and 8 a.m.

The Mountain Vista Trading Post on North 7th Street in Sierra Vista
was burglarized when someone forcibly entered the building through
the front door of the business.

"The owner has advised us that numerous items were taken and that the
initial assessment is at least 62 different firearms were stolen,
along with ammunition," said Carol Capas, public information officer
for the county sheriff's department.

"We have several leads, which we are actively following.
"Because of the significant number of weapons that are now out in the
community, this burglary is a huge concern for us," Capas said.
"We are making it a priority to follow every lead in order to
apprehend those responsible for this."

While the sheriff's office is continuing to follow leads as they come
in, deputies are asking anyone with information to call 432-9500. All
information received will remain confidential.

AZMEX SPECIAL 31-12-11

AZMEX SPECIAL 31 DEC 2011

Note: This report on the AZMEX border from a year or so back, but if
you haven't seen it, or did before, still well worth the read or
reading again. Real people live here. Go the link for maps.

http://www.federalobserver.com/2010/07/27/ashurst-a-border-manifesto/

Ashurst: A Border Manifesto
Posted by: The Publisher on: July 27 2010 • Categorized in: Ed Ashurst

I believe story telling to be an art form, certainly verbal record is
the oldest form of recording history and recognized by historians
worldwide. There is an old adage among those who love to tell a good
tale, "Never let the truth get in the way of a good story." And yet
there are times when the truth is even more fantastic than
exaggeration. What I write here is the truth, plain and simple.

I reside on, and manage a large cattle ranch in the far southeastern
corner of Arizona. I've been here for 13 years and in that time frame
have become far too familiar with the illegal trafficking in human
beings, marijuana and other illicit drugs. Some have called it "the
wetback culture" or "America's border problem". Lately it's been
taking steroids.

The recent murder of Robert Krentz by an illegal alien has received
massive amounts of publicity worldwide. I live on the ranch bordering
the Krentz ranch to the east and north. I can see the Krentz home
looking out of my front door approximately 10 miles away. The day
after Rob's death I was involved in tracking the outlaw into Mexico.
I saw the outlaw's footprints where he crossed the border fence. I
mention this to say I feel that I'm qualified to speak about current
border issues.

My home has been broken into twice. My son's home has been broken
into also and between us we have had between twenty and thirty
thousand dollars worth of stuff stolen from us including two ranch
pick-ups, a four wheeler, 9 firearms (including a loaded AK 47) cash,
jewelry all of our credit cards, driver's license, etc. A guest house
here on the ranch has been broken into so many times we quit
counting… many times we haven't even called the Sheriff's dept. The
Cochise County Sheriff's dept. has no less than fifteen reports on
file where I've called for assistance dealing with an outlaw illegal
alien.

Several months ago, not long after Rob Krentz's death, Fox news
(channel 10 in Phoenix AZ) contacted me and expressed interest in
coming down and doing a news story about me and the problems myself
and other ranchers in this area have had in recent months with
illegal outlaws. To prepare for my interview with Fox, I asked for
assistance from six other neighboring ranchers and businessmen. All
of these men are prominent men in the community, tax payers, business
owners and individuals who have the best of reputations. Together we
made a map of the area which covered from the southeastern corner of
AZ going west about 20 miles to the silver creek area, and going
north about 30 miles to the area around the towns of Portal, AZ and
Rodeo, N.M. On this map we made marks recording violations to United
States law committed by illegal aliens. We did not use government
statistics (we wouldn't know how to get them) but recorded incidents
that we knew had happened first hand, many of which we had witnessed.
We tried to record only the incidents that have happened in the last
several years.

* The sum total of what we recorded is this:

* The arrest or capture of 40 illegal in one bunch – 40

(we didn't bother with the countless smaller groups)

* Loads of Marijuana found and captured – 213

* Dangerous encounters with illegal aliens – 132

(assault, burglaries, forced entries, etc.)

* Dead illegal aliens found by civilians – 16

* High speed vehicle chases between dope haulers and law
enforcement – 14

* Illegal aliens spotted with firearms – 12

* Fires started by illegal aliens – 9

Over 100,000 acres burned with the cost to taxpayers of $ 40,000,000.
One fire near Portal AZ in June of 2010 cost $10,000,000. to fight
(forest Service estimate)

* Outlandish incidents – 4

Example: One bachelor in the Portal area was burglarized around 100
times. He finally took all his valuables and put them in a steel
vault and welded the door shut. He then moved out of his house into a
shed hoping the illegal aliens would leave him alone. They did not
and he finally abandoned his property. Another outlandish event was
when outlaws stole a brand new Caterpillar motor grader on the
Geronimo Trail east of Douglas, AZ and drove south through the border
fence never to be seen again. The grader belonged to Cochise County
Hwy Dept.

* Financial losses to private sector – $100,000,000.00

(losses in real estate value, personal property, etc., losses in
wildlife habitat – immeasurable)

Last but certainly not least, the murder of Rob Krentz, which is
right in the center of our map.

Let me put this in perspective. The area I'm talking about is an area
that covers approximately 17 or 18 townships with only 20 miles being
adjacent to the US – Mexico Boundary. Within this area, there is a
population of perhaps 600 people, 90% of which reside in Rodeo, N.M.
or Portal, AZ, 30 miles or so north of Mexico. No less than 80% of
the people in this area have been burglarized or otherwise molested
by illegal aliens. This area is about half as big as the Diamond A
ranch or Babbitt ranch in northern AZ, both of which I've been
employed on.

~ The Author ~

I'm sorry to report that this, in my opinion, is the small part of
the story. The Mexican-American border has taken a dramatic change
for the worse in the last several years. Those of us who live here
see it first hand. As early as February of 1999 Sheriff Larry Dever
warned me and others at a town hall meeting at the Apache School that
the Sinaloa Cartel was moving into the Douglas-Agua Prieta area (Rob
Krentz was at this meeting). The cities of Nuevo Laredo, Coahila,
Cuidad Juarez, Chihuahua, and other border towns south of Texas have
been controlled by outlaws for years. There is virtually no law
enforcement in those places. The law is the law of the jungle. Until
the last two years it seemed that Agua Prieta and Nogales were safer
places but that has dramatically changed in recent months.

I am personally acquainted with 2 Mexican men, that I know to be
honest and trustworthy, who have been involved first hand with
Mexican outlaw terrorist acts. One witnessed first hand an execution
of several people in broad daylight in Juarez. Several weeks later
his daughter witnessed an assassination in Casas Grandes, Chihuahua
no more than fifteen feet from where she stood. The other man is a
legal Mexican green card holder (who was employed by the Krentz
family for years) whose nephew was murdered by cartel members in
Sonora. At night people in Douglas are hearing machine gun fire from
Agua Prieta south of the border fence.

The Sinaloa Cartel is now putting a stranglehold on Agua Prieta. No
more than 2 months ago 8 armed Mexicans were confronted by 2, U.S.
Border Patrol agents north of the International Boundary in southeast
Cochise County disguised as Federalizes. They were in fact cartel
employees armed with assault rifles and automatic pistols. Mexican
people that know tell me the situation in Agua Prieta has
deteriorated dramatically in recent months. The good people are told
to look the other way "or else." Volumes could be written about this
subject alone, but I will move on.

You could ask, "So what does this have to do with us living north of
the border fence?" Plenty! The situation on the border isn't just
about a few workers walking north. It has everything to do with big
business. Billions of dollars are being made trafficking humans,
drugs, and contraband across the International Boundary. The Sinaloa
Cartel, headed by Chapo Guzman and others, is reaping huge profits
doing business along the border. The average coyote charges $1500 –
$2500 to guide an illegal alien north to find work; usually
abandoning them a short distance north of the line. A young man
willing to pack dope north can make more than a construction worker
or a teacher in the U.S. and only work a day or two a week.

This is not all south of the line. I could take you and show you
businesses where checks and credit cards are not accepted and where
very few customers walk through the door, yet the owners live in the
largest mansions in town and drive very expensive cars. Could there
be some money laundering going on? There are only two industries of
any significance in Douglas, AZ: law enforcement (Douglas has one of
the largest Border Patrol stations in America), and the illegal
trafficking of drugs, people, etc. across the border. These two
industries feed on each other, and the powers that be seem happy with
the situation. Crooked politicians look good to the public when they
clean up drunk driving and prostitution, until you find they own bars
and whore houses south of the line. These things have happened!

But this, in my opinion, is only the beginning. Chapo Guzman who
heads up the Sinaloa Cartel is a multibillionaire. This guy and
others like him may be cruel and sinister people but they are also
very smart businessmen. They are reaping profits off of the largest
tax free unregulated business on the planet. They have so much cash
they are befuddled what to do with it all. But they are going to
figure it out.

There are rumors that Guzman is financing modern, state of the art
feedlots and packing houses in Mexico with plans to overtake America
as the Western hemisphere's leading beef producer. This is probably
only a small part of his plans. Mexico is a nation rich in natural
recourses. Petroleum is abundant and the corrupt Mexican government
is in control of all of it. Pemex is the only gas station in town.
Pemex, because of the incompetent Mexican government, is broke. Chapo
Guzman is at war with the Mexican government and has dreams (not
unrealistic) of controlling the entire nation. Think of all of
Mexico's natural resources in the control of Chapo Guzman! He already
has the most profitable business in the world – selling Marijuana to
your next door neighbor. Think what he could do with a tax free
unregulated strangle hold on a nation of poor people begging to work
for practically nothing.

Do you think that Chapo Guzman and others like him haven't thought of
all of this? Do you think that Guzman isn't laughing all the way to
the bank as he watches the evening news and hears how the American
Government proclaims that the situation on the border is under
control? What is going on in northern Mexico is capitalism in its
rawest form. They have an untaxed unregulated business making huge
profits and they have no plans of closing up shop any time soon. We
here in the U.S. are overtaxed, overregulated and being smothered by
increasingly intrusive government that makes it hard to do business
in a successful manner. You don't have to be rocket scientist to
figure this one out.

This has nothing to do with being Republican or Democrat or Latino or
White. It has everything to do with being right or wrong. I came from
a long line of Democrats. My great uncle was a U.S. Senator for
several decades. My grandfather was an attorney, and a Superior Court
Judge. I have a 1939 copy of a Time Magazine with his picture when he
ran as a Democrat for Congress. The only time in history the U.S
deficit was paid off was by a Democrat – Andrew Jackson. John Kennedy
announced nearly 50 years ago that America could put a man on the
moon and in less than a decade we did it.

I am now a registered Republican, but I'm not a Democrat hater. But,
how can the president of the "can do" nation of Andrew Jackson's and
JFK's party say we can't seal the border? We conquered Adolph Hitler
in World War II, but can't seal the border? We put a man on the moon
but can't seal a leaking oil well in less than 90 days? While this is
going on we tax and regulate American business with a vengeance that
stifles the free market system that has made our country great. While
Janet Napolitano announces the border is safer than ever, Chapo
Guzman and others pack billions of American dollars south to invest
in a tax free market with one of the largest cheap labor force on the
planet at his disposal!

I challenge you to come to Douglas, AZ and drive east on the Geronimo
Trail, or northeast on US Hwy 80 to places on the map like Chiracahua
and Apache. Or go to Rodeo and Hatchita, NM. Go and search out the 5
biggest cattle ranches in the Apache, AZ area and ask them what they
think. Go to Hidalgo County, N.M. and ask the ranchers and cowboys
there what they are seeing and hearing. Ask the people who we do
business with what they think of our opinions. I challenge you to ask
the prominent people in this area, who work hard and pay taxes if
they agree with Barack Obama or Ed Ashurst when it comes to what is
really going on near the U.S.-Mexican border. Unlike Obama and others
I don't have to be surrounded by sycophants to make a statement. I
purposefully left out the names of those who helped me with my map
and the data I collected when preparing for the Fox interview.

In closing I challenge you to look around to see if what I say is the
truth. This isn't about a few Mexicans wandering around looking for a
job. This is about American civilization going into a time of
tremendous change – a building has foundations and walls, maybe the
foundation of our country is still strong, I don't know, but the
walls have certainly fallen down and the keepers of the house are out
to lunch.

July 25, 2010

Ed Ashurst, Apache Arizona

AZMEX EXTRA 31-12-11

AZMEX EXTRA 31 DEC 2011

Note: Unusual for someone to actually get the ten.

Leader of weapons purchasing ring to spend 10 years in prison
December 30, 2011 9:00 PM
Ildefonso Ortiz, Twitter: @ildefonsoortiz
http://www.themonitor.com/news/purchasing-57628-ring-spend.html

McALLEN — A restaurant owner will spend 10 years in prison for his
leadership role in a ring that illegally bought firearms by using
intermediaries in a practice called straw purchasing. The ring is
responsible for purchasing 39 firearms some of which had had the
serial numbers filed off.

Chief U.S. District Ricardo Hinojosa sentenced Manuel Tijerina-
Herrera,48, to three five-year terms in prison for making false
statements in the purchase of firearms and five years for conspiracy
to make false statements, in addition to a 10-year sentence for
possession of an unregistered silencer. The terms are set to run
concurrently.

Agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
began investigating Tijerina-Herrera in 2008 after four co-defendants
fell onto the agency's radar for suspicious purchases.

Once in custody they each told authorities that they had bought the
weapons for Tijerina-Herrera and had taken them to his restaurant in
McAllen called El Tiburon. In March 2010, agents followed another
buyer to another of Tijerina-Herrera's businesses, where they saw
them transfer the weapons to his car. A search of Tijerina-Herrera's
home also turned up a 9mm Beretta with a silencer.

A federal jury convicted Tijerina-Herrera in September 2011 after a
three-day trial.

Ildefonso Ortiz covers law enforcement and general assignments for
The Monitor. He can be reached at Iortiz@themonitor.com at 956-683-4437

AZMEX I3 30-12-11

AZMEX I3 30 DEC 2011

Note: This one could use further investigation. Commit murders in
Mexico and escape to safety in the U.S. Especially sanctuary states
and cities. Guess he couldn't make it to CA, SF, et al.
Also, how did he get caught in Phoenix??

Triple-murder suspect deported at Nogales
Marcos Samuel Rentería Gaxiola, alias "El Mamut," allegedly confessed
to killing three people – including a toddler – on New Year's Day 2011.

Posted: Friday, December 30, 2011 8:37 am
By Jonathan Clark
Nogales International
http://www.nogalesinternational.com/news/triple-murder-suspect-
deported-at-nogales/article_540660c4-32fc-11e1-ac5e-0019bb2963f4.html

A man wanted for the murder of two adults and a toddler in Caborca,
Sonora was arrested by U.S. authorities in Phoenix and handed over to
Mexican law enforcement in Nogales last week, U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement said.

Marcos Samuel Rentería Gaxiola, alias "El Mamut," was deported
through Nogales on Dec. 23, U.S. and Mexican officials said. The 26-
year-old suspect was wanted for the Jan. 1, 2011 murder of two men
and a 2-year-old boy.

"Agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland
Security Investigations learned of his presence in the U.S. as part
of an ongoing investigation into suspected criminal activity," said
ICE spokesperson Amber Cargile. "Once we confirmed he was wanted in
Mexico as a homicide suspect, ICE agents apprehended him in Phoenix
and made his subsequent removal a priority."

ICE then worked in collaboration with the U.S. Border Patrol to hand
Rentería over to Mexican law enforcement at the border, Cargill said.
ICE's attaché in Mexico coordinated with officials there, she said.

However, a news release issued by the Sonora State Investigative
Police, or PEI, left out any mention of U.S.-Mexican collaboration in
the case. Instead, the agency said, its agents in Nogales, Sonora
captured Renteria by chance during a routine patrol near the border.

According to the PEI, the agents noticed a group of people being
repatriated to Mexico from the United States on Dec. 23. One of the
deportees reportedly told the officers that he had heard that wanted
murderer "El Mamut" was among the group.

The PEI said the agents then tracked the man down, detained him,
confirmed his identity and confirmed the warrant for his arrest.
After he was transferred to Caborca for questioning, he allegedly
confessed to the New Year's Day murders, though he said he never
intended to kill the child.

Rentería allegedly told investigators that on the day of the murders,
he was outside his parents' house, trying to light a bonfire, when
Emilio Valenzuela, 24, and Jesús Manuel Baez Díaz, 29, pulled up in a
pickup truck and tried to force their way onto the property.

When he blocked their path, Renteria said, the men threatened him and
his family, so he ran into the house and pulled an assault rifle from
under a bed. He then jumped into a vehicle and chased after them.

When he caught up with the men, he saw that they were armed, so he
shot them several times, Renteria allegedly said.

He then fled to Puerto Peñasco (Rocky Point), and from there crossed
illegally into the United States. He said he didn't know that the
child had been shot until he was on the run.

AZMEX UPDATE 30-12-11

AZMEX UPDATE 30 DEC 2011

Note: Another Oped. A whole lot to discuss on this press release.
Border is more secure than the 60's, and 70's for example. But
things have changed big time. The earlier parameters are now totally
irrelevant.

Apprehensions and illegal border crossings are down, yes much of it
due to the bad economy, and then the increases in Border Patrol
personnel, physical barriers, and surveillance.

Something we down here keep hearing is that apprehension numbers can
be, and are affected by how, when and where all the previous are
deployed. A methodology that can certainly drive apprehension
numbers down, but in relation to actual crossings.

With what is happening today, the effort is far from adequate. Those
interested, might want to come down this way and tour the border,
visit with the locals. See and hear a lot more without the escorts
and entourages. Also not quite so secure. sometime not even secure.

The boots on the ground are a lot more reluctant to talk these days
as losing a govt. paycheck is a real deterrent in this economy.
Another question: Are the efforts to detect corruption and
infiltration tilting more toward detecting whistle blowers? BTW,
the new guy hasn't earned much love from those boots either.

Put AZMEX SPECIAL 31-12-11 on your reading list.
thx

Retiring Border Patrol chief's legacy: A more secure border
by Daniel González - Dec. 29, 2011 11:23 PM
The Arizona Republic

Since Alan Bersin took over as head of the federal agency in charge
of border security two years ago, illegal immigration has fallen
sharply in Arizona and along the rest of the Southwest border.

Some immigration experts say much of the credit goes to Bersin, who
today is stepping down as commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border
Protection, a massive agency with 57,000 employees and an $11 billion
budget.

As head of the agency, Bersin beefed up border security by adding
manpower, aircraft surveillance, fencing and other barriers, and
implementing a variety of programs aimed at deterring illegal
immigrants and drug smugglers from entering the country.

As a result, Border Patrol apprehensions, a measure of illegal-
immigration traffic, have fallen by 53 percent since 2008 and are now
at one fifth of what they were at their peak in 2000, according to
the Department of Homeland Security.

In Arizona, which for years has been the main transit point for
illegal border crossings, Border Patrol apprehensions are at the
lowest levels in 17 years, according to DHS.

"This has to be attributed to (Bersin)," said Demetrios G.
Papademetriou, president of the Migration Policy Institute, a think
tank in Washington, D.C., that studies immigration. "He has been the
person who has been in charge. The same way we would blame Alan
Bersin if we hadn't made enough progress, fair or unfair, we have to
give credit to Alan Bersin for whatever gains we have made at the
border."

Some border-security advocates, however, say illegal immigration fell
because the jobs in the U.S. that draw illegal immigrants dried up in
the bad economy.

"The effectiveness that we've had wasn't due to him," said George
McCubbin, president of the National Border Patrol Council and a
senior Border Patrol agent assigned to the Casa Grande station. "I
think the economy has really probably been the Number 1 reason as to
why the arrest numbers are down. I don't believe it was any strategy
that was come up with under his time."

President Barack Obama directly appointed Bersin as commissioner of
Customs and Border Protection in March 2010, after the Senate failed
to act on Obama's nomination of Bersin and several other top federal
officials, who also were given so-called recess appointments.

The agency is responsible for border security, protecting the nation
from terrorist threats and expediting legal travel and trade through
air, land and sea ports.

Bersin announced on Dec. 22 that he was stepping down as of today,
the day before his recess appointment would have ended.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said that
Deputy Commissioner David Aguilar will serve as acting commissioner.
Previously, Aguilar was head of the Border Patrol and was chief of
the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector.

In a written statement, Napolitano credited Bersin for taking
"historic steps" to secure the nation's borders while facilitating
legal travel and trade.

Sen. John McCain, who sits on the Senate Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs Committee, gave Bersin kudos on his way out.

"As far as what I could tell, he did good work," McCain, R-Ariz.,
told The Arizona Republic on Thursday. "In the involvement that I had
with him, I was impressed with his professionalism."

Under Bersin, Border Patrol apprehensions in the Tucson Sector, the
nation's busiest, fell from 241,673 two years ago to 123,285 last
year, according to Border Patrol statistics.

In the Yuma Sector, Border Patrol apprehensions fell from 6,951 two
years ago to 5,833 last year. Apprehensions in the Yuma Sector are
down 96 percent from a high of 138,438 in 2005.

Along the entire southern border, Border Patrol apprehensions fell
from 540,865 two years ago to 327,577 last year.

During Bersin's tenure, 1,200 National Guard troops were deployed
along the border, including roughly 560 in Arizona, to help spot
illegal border crossers.

Beginning in January, the National Guard troops will be mostly
removed and replaced with National Guard aircraft to help provide
additional aerial surveillance and reconnaissance.

A total of nine Predator drones are now patrolling the southern border.

Under Bersin, the Border Patrol also expanded a program in the Tucson
Sector that prosecutes illegal border crossers before sending them
back to Mexico. He also expanded the use of a program that buses
illegal immigrants captured in Arizona to other border states for
removal; deporting them in other states, where it is more difficult
to enter illegally and cuts down on the chances that they will try to
cross again.

Rick Van Schoik, director of the North American Center for
Transborder Studies, a think tank at Arizona State University, said
Bersin will be difficult to replace.

Before being appointed as commissioner of CBP, Bersin served as
Obama's border czar, focusing on illegal-immigration and drug-
smuggling issues as well as developing relations with Mexico to
combat drug cartels. He held a similar position in President Bill
Clinton's administration.
"He brought a wealth of insight and expertise from his background and
extraordinary intelligence," Van Schoik said.

Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne said that although Border Patrol
apprehensions have dropped sharply in the Tucson Sector, they remain
unacceptably high, especially in contrast with the Yuma Sector.

"It's sort of if a student was getting 20 percent on their tests and
now they are getting 50 percent on their tests -- that is a 250
percent increase in their grades but they are still failing," Horne
said.

Republic reporter Dan Nowicki contributed to this article.

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/
2011/12/29/20111229retiring-customs-chiefs-legacy-more-secure-arizona-
border.html#ixzz1i2ChPI6Z

AZMEX UPDATE 29-12-11

AZMEX UPDATE 29 DEC 2011

Note: Oped. A "gun-free" and defenseless society. Mex. govt.
continues to disarm citizens to aid drug gangs and corruption.

Are they also destroying evidence? Have to wonder if they have
documented the weapons destroyed. If the documentation exists, and
could be obtained, how many would be sourced to U.S. aid programs,
Fast & Furious, stolen in U.S. etc. ?

Also as in the U.S. much of what is turned in is the "junker" class.
Another factor is very heavy sentences for anyone not a cartel
associate caught with an "illegal" firearm.

Published: 12/28/2011 21:40 By: SUN
2,138 destroyed weapons in 2011
http://www.elimparcial.com/EdicionEnLinea/Notas/Nacional/
28122011/563382.aspx

Since the inception in 2002, the Ministry of Public Security of Baja
California has destroyed more than 30,000 firearms, while during 2011
they disabled 2,138 pieces.

Mexicali, Baja California (SUN) from inception in 2002, the Ministry
of Public Security of Baja California has destroyed more than 30 000
firearms, while during 2011 they disabled 2 000 138 pieces.

The weapons were delivered to military installations by people
"socially responsible", said Daniel de la Rosa Anaya, secretary of
state Public Safety.

This was unveiled during the ceremony of destruction of weapons
donated by the citizens, in which De la Rosa Anaya said that
"prevention activities carried out hand in hand with society, are
critical to improving climate Security in Baja California. "

"A gun-free society is the reason the momentum of the 'Campaign
Donation State Firearms and Explosives' in which the participation of
the community since 2002 have been received and destroyed more than
30,000 weapons firearms and explosives delivered by the citizens,
"the state official.

In the campaign of 2011 were 2,138 delivered and destroyed artifacts
in exchange for which each was given a grocery voucher worth 1,500
pesos.

"Importantly for the implementation of the preventive activity, the
Ministry of Public Security of the State (SSPE) invested in 2011 the
amount of 3 million pesos, and by 2012 it will invest approximately 5
½ million pesos," said Public Security Secretary of State.

Gen. Gilberto Landeros, commander of the Second Military Zone, said
it was important work being done in coordination with officials from
the three levels of government and society.

Finally, Daniel de la Rosa said that "the fight against crime will
continue and be strengthened through coordinated efforts among
various government agencies, corporations, police and the Mexican
Army, with the clear objective of safeguarding the integrity of the
citizens of Baja California.

Note: Area is saturated with fed law enforcement. Some local folks
claim that is the only visible means of support for community.

Crime continues to be down in Douglas
By Bruce Whetten
Douglas Dispatch
Published/Last Modified on Wednesday, December 28, 2011 3:19 PM MST
http://www.douglasdispatch.com/articles/2011/12/29/news/
doc4efb8eae0235f825090998.txt

Crime statistics for the month of November show crime in Douglas
continues to decline while traffic enforcement citations are up
slightly.

According to information provided to the Douglas Dispatch by Sgt.
Jose Duarte of the Douglas Police Dept., crime in Douglas continues
to be down 25 percent with notable differences in burglary, theft and
aggravated assault.

Traffic accidents are down 15.8 percent compared to last year while
traffic enforcement citations are up 11 percent.

Douglas' Police Chief Alberto Melis said he increased his motorcycle
patrol officers from two to four and a number of the traffic
enforcement citations have come from the patrolling his officers are
doing along Third Street.

"This is a direct result of the fact we're getting more people in
town," he said.

The Chief said he is very happy with how the Third Street route into
Mexico is working right now and is happy the congestion his officers
were once facing when traffic was going in along Fifth Street seems
to be solved.

Chief Melis said his officers will be out over the holiday stretch
watching for any impaired drivers and he wants the citizens of
Douglas to be able to enjoy a safe holiday weekend.

Note: do the Army and Leyzaola get the blame?

The 2011 closed with 3,900 homicides in the state, 35% less than in
2010: Duarte
Flor A. Holguin | December 29, 2011 | 14:14 pm
http://eldiariodechihuahua.mx/notas.php?
f=2011/12/29&id=efdc71108e34193a6fd0fbd413660206

Chihuahua, Chih.-state governor, Cesar Duarte, said that in the state
of Chihuahua are still many security problems but-assured 'we
consistently down phenomenon', in this context, the Chihuahua leader
announced that 2010 ended with almost 6,000 intentional homicide in
the state but this 2011, to date there have been 3,900 cases of this
nature, which means, 'said the executive, it has been a decrease of
35 per cent.
In this context, Duarte said that only in Ciudad Juarez there is one
report in which more than 850 commercial establishments reported that
they do not pay flat fee (extortion), 'This is thanks to the 140
extortionists arrested in the year, "said the official.
He also explained that in the border city, as of December 2009, there
were 292 intentional homicide while December of 2010 were 218, but
this December (2011) takes account of 106 murders, which he said
represented a drop more than 70 percent.

AZMEX F&F EXTRA 1-1-12

AZMEX F&F EXTRA 1 JAN 2012

White House treated criticism as partisan attack, 2 scholars say
Texas professors say
Five ways 'Furious' was mishandled
Tim Steller Arizona Daily Star
| Posted: Sunday, January 1, 2012 12:00 am

The Obama administration could have gotten ahead of the revelations
about Operation Fast and Furious before it became a scandal, say a
pair of researchers on U.S. presidential scandals.

Instead, it treated criticism of the ill-conceived gun-trafficking
investigation like a partisan attack, said professors Brandon
Rottinghaus and Scott Basinger of the University of Houston. By
waiting to disclose the details of the Phoenix-based investigation
that facilitated the sale of 2,000 firearms to suspected criminals,
the Justice Department opened itself to ongoing disclosures and
critiques, they said.

Now those are continuing more than a year after U.S. Border Patrol
Agent Brian Terry was killed near Rio Rico, possibly with a Fast and
Furious gun, and even as a presidential election year begins.
"They've been nonchalant about it, and I don't think that's the best
thing for them," said political-science professor Rottinghaus.

Basinger, his research partner and fellow political-science
professor, said the administration's response reflects a trend in
today's highly partisan politics.
"Because things are so polarized, one side is immediately convicting
and insisting it goes all the way to the top," Basinger said. "The
other side is insisting there's nothing there."

The Justice Department has pointed to its practice of not commenting
on ongoing investigations as a reason for its relative silence. Also,
the department's Office of Inspector General is conducting its own
investigation of Operation Fast and Furious, so the department is
taking few steps until the report is complete.

Here are five episodes since Terry was killed on Dec. 14, 2010, when
the Justice Department and its agencies either flubbed its response
to the operation or could have done better to get ahead of the
controversy:

1. December 2010-February 2011: Non-disclosure of Fast and Furious
after Terry was slain

On Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2010, the day after Terry was killed, federal
officials gathered in Tucson for a news conference and other
consultations, as agents combed the area northwest of Nogales for
suspects.

FBI supervisors knew that day that two assault rifles found at the
scene of Terry's murder had been sold at a Phoenix gun store to a man
under surveillance by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and
Explosives. Dennis Burke, then-U.S. attorney for Arizona, Burke
confirmed it that night.

But it took about three months until the Justice Department
acknowledged the connection of those guns to the investigation.

On Feb. 4, Assistant Attorney General Ronald Weich wrote Sen. Chuck
Grassley, R-Iowa, a letter, now notorious, denying the connections:
"The allegation described in your January 27 letter - that ATF
'sanctioned' or otherwise knowingly allowed the sale of assault
weapons to a straw purchaser who then transported them into Mexico -
is false. ATF makes every effort to interdict weapons that have been
purchased illegally and prevent their transportation to Mexico."

"There was information in that letter that was inaccurate," Attorney
General Eric Holder admitted Nov. 8. "I received things as late as
March of 2011 from people at ATF who assured me that gun walking did
not occur."

2. May 3, 2011: When Holder learned of the operation

During a House Judiciary Committee hearing on May 3, U.S. Rep.
Darrell Issa, R-Calif., asked Holder when he first learned about
Operation Fast and Furious.

Holder answered, "I'm not sure of the exact date, but I probably
heard about Fast and Furious for the first time over the last few
weeks."

That estimate came back to bite him in October, when, in response to
a request from the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee,
the Justice Department handed over several 2010 memos to Holder
describing Fast and Furious.

At a Nov. 8 hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Holder denied
he read the memos sent him in 2010 because it's actually staff who
reads the many memos addressed formally to him.

"I have ultimate responsibility for that which happens in the
department, but I cannot be expected to know the details for every
operation that is ongoing in the Justice Department on a day-to-day
basis," Holder said.

At the same hearing, he said it would have been more accurate to say
on May 3 he'd heard of Fast and Furious in the past "couple of months."

3. Aug. 11, 2011: Victim status for Terry's parents

In an Aug. 1 court filing, Brian Terry's parents asked through their
attorney to be officially recognized as victims in the case against
accused gun trafficker Jaime Avila Jr., federal prosecutors say.

Avila is accused of buying AK-47-type guns from Phoenix-area stores
for Mexican crime groups. He has pleaded not guilty. Two guns he
bought, Romanian-made assault rifles, were found at the scene of
Terry's killing, but the FBI said it cannot determine whether either
was the murder weapon.

To the surprise of Josephine and Kent Terry's attorney, a federal
prosecutor argued against their request to be named victims. That
status would have required the government to inform the family of
hearings and any possibility the defendant would be released, as well
as assuring them a chance to speak at Avila's sentencing.

The prosecutor who opposed the parents' request was Emory Hurley, the
same attorney who led Operation Fast and Furious for almost two
years. He said in his response that the Terrys would certainly be
afforded victim status in the separate case against those accused of
killing their son, but that Avila's alleged crimes were too
disconnected from the killing for them to fit the legal definition of
victims.

Soon, Hurley was removed from the case, which was handed over to
federal prosecutors in San Diego. They found a way to keep the Terrys
informed about the case without formally declaring them victims.

4. November 2011: Ex-U.S. attorney admits leak

Over the summer and into the fall, Grassley spoke angrily about a
memo and a set of talking points leaked to a reporter that smeared
ATF Special Agent John Dodson. Grassley pointed to the leak as an
attempt to retaliate against Dodson, the whistle-blower who
originally contacted Grassley about Operation Fast and Furious in
January 2011.

The documents were never released publicly or even used in a news
story, but the leak became big news Nov. 8 when former U.S. Attorney
Dennis Burke admitted publicly he was responsible. On Aug. 16, Burke
had privately told the inspector general's investigators that he
leaked the memo. He resigned Aug. 30.

Burke's admission did not satisfy Grassley, who promised the drip-
drip of disclosures would continue.

"The Justice Department should not be allowed to continue
scapegoating the one person who has resigned," Grassley said in a
written statement.

5. November 2011: Case against Terry's accused killer sealed

Sometime in late 2011, while reporters and other watchdogs had their
eyes averted, federal prosecutors asked that the case against the
people accused of killing Brian Terry be sealed.
It's not unusual that cases are sealed in federal court, but the
decision threw another blanket of obscurity over a prominent case
already layered in haze.

Manuel Osorio-Arellanes was indicted and charged with second-degree
murder in May, but the indictment said Osorio-Arellanes was not the
man who shot Terry. He was just a member of the "rip crew" whom
Terry's tactical unit encountered that night west of Rio Rico.

Other names appeared to be listed on the indictment, but those were
blacked out.

Some supporters of Brian Terry and his family saw the sealing as a
sign that the Justice Department was trying to hide something, but
Brandon Judd, president of the agents' union local in Southern
Arizona, took a more nuanced view. He said there may be a legitimate
investigative reason for sealing the indictment, but agents are
frustrated with the secrecy.

He also said the sealing keeps prying eyes off what he suspects will
be information showing "a debacle on the part of the government."

On StarNet: Find extensive coverage of immigration and border issues
at azstarnet.com/border

"Because things are so polarized, one side is immediately convicting
and insisting it goes all the way to the top. The other side is
insisting there's nothing there."
Scott Basinger,
University of Houston political-science professor

Read more: http://azstarnet.com/news/local/crime/five-ways-furious-
was-mishandled/
article_667c7abd-0cfd-531c-9b6a-3f029b9576d6.html#ixzz1iG3m1wSv