AZMEX I3-2 19 MAR 2019
Note: Op-ed and reporting from Townhall.
Wait, How Many Illegal Aliens Are Ignoring Their Final Deportation Orders…
Matt Vespa Matt Vespa
@mvespa1 |Posted: Mar 19, 2019 4:15 PM
https://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattvespa/2019/03/19/wait-how-many-illegal-aliens-are-ignoring-their-final-deportation-orders-n2543386?utm_source=thdailypm&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=nl_pm&newsletterad=&bcid=b9506c88c4bf726128e53e70db4b16b9&recip=5905748
Wait, How Many Illegal Aliens Are Ignoring Their Final Deportation Orders…
We're back, and Storm is quite punchy today. Torching all the things, including me, but we'll get to that in a second. First on the hit list were the GOP senators who voted for blocking the national emergency declaration that President Trump issued concerning the illegal alien crisis on our southern border. Trump vetoed it, and while we didn't have the names of those who stabbed us in the back at the time of recording, here they are for this post:
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky.
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska
Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn.
Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah
Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan.
Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa.
Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio
Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss.
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla.
Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo.
Trump has had much patience concerning his action item for a border wall. It's time to get it done. The Democrats are not serious.
Another thing that isn't serious is the Russian collusion myth, which has devolved into a massive taxpayer-funded investigation helmed by Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Even Democrats are admitting that nothing will probably come of this investigation. And the American people are starting to turn against it. Guy wrote it up yesterday. Fifty-four percent of Independents see Trump as a victim of a witch hunt, 50 percent overall feel the same way, and support for impeachment is at an abysmal 28 percent. Please Democrats…keep pushing this. It's only helping the man remain in office.
And speaking of offices, Judge Jeanine Pirro had her show yanked off the airwaves because she brought up Rep. Ilhan Omar's hijab. I've watched the clip. It's embedded below. There is nothing wrong with it. Nothing. Sorry, around 99.9 percent of it is trashing the Democratic Party's inability to confront the rising tide of anti-Semitism within their ranks, all of it coming from Omar. Omar is also not new to peddling anti-Semitic trash on social media; she's been doing it since 2012. She engulfed her whole party in this mess with their garbage resolution that went from condemning anti-Semitism to a watered down version that is essentially worthless because the party isn't unified in fighting this horrific bigotry.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi's defense of Omar is ridiculous, where she essentially calls her too stupid to know what she says so she can't be anti-Semitic. Omar was educated here and has lived here for nearly a quarter-century. If she's too dumb, then why is she on Foreign Relations, Madame speaker? Why does she continue to engage in these anti-Semitic antics?
Maybe the closing by Judge Jeanine could've been executed better. Maybe the delivery was a bit sloppy, but it was hardly something that she should be quasi-suspended over. Yeah, so much for never caving to the mob, Fox News.
And speaking of caving, Storm decided to go after me for attending a junket promoting the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which is gaining traction. Delaware and Colorado are pushing it. Colorado has already officially joined, with Delaware not too far off. A bill to allocate Electoral College votes based on whoever wins the national popular vote passed the state house. I think the initiative has some merits, but I'm still unconvinced we need to burn the whole system down. The Electoral College has served us well, but I'm not afraid to have a debate about the national popular vote; I wrote about it here.
For one thing, I still think we'd win under such a system, but Paglia was on the warpath. The one thing that has changed is that I don't think Florida is on the verge of becoming a blue state after the past two elections there. What absolutely cannot be allowed, however, is for the next Democratic president, which hopefully won't be for a long time, be allowed to pack the Supreme Court a la FDR.
But, that's a backburner discussion. Right now, some 60-65,000 illegal aliens are being apprehended a month on average, 76,000 in February alone. We need a wall. We need border security, but Storm noted Conservative Review's piece where over a million illegal aliens are just ignoring their final deportation notices. They're just staying here. And if you combine those with notices and those with final orders pending, that figure soars past 2 million:
According to new data obtained by the Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) via a FOIA request, there are 644,488 illegal aliens remaining in our country who have already been served final deportation orders. And those are just from the top four countries of origin – El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. The IRLI shared much more data with CR. The total number of illegal aliens who remain in the country despite final deportation orders is 1,009,550.
In addition, there are roughly 1.1 million others from those four counties who have "pending final orders" and are close to receiving deportation orders. Those with pending final orders are usually individuals who have already been ordered deported by immigration judges but are appealing their case to the Bureau of Immigration Appeals (BIA), the appellate body of the DOJ's administrative immigration courts.
That is a total of 1.7 million illegal aliens from Mexico and Central America with final or near-final orders of deportation. Those numbers are as of June 2018, right before the largest surge in Central Americans began over that summer and intensified in the fall of 2018 and winter of 2019. The total number of those ordered deported or with pending deportation orders for nationals of all countries of origin is 2.55 million.
Folks, this is one of the major reasons why Trump won the primary and the 2016 election. Democrats have allowed federal immigration laws to be ignored, mocked, and denigrated. Not under Donald Trump.
In some company news, Salem Media Group has acquired PJ Media. So, be sure to follow Tyler O'Neil and Paula Bolyard who will be helming things over there. Welcome to the Salem Empire, folks. On Thursday, we're having a special Bob O'Rouke episode. See you then.
End
Wednesday, March 20, 2019
Tuesday, March 19, 2019
AZMEX I3 19-3-19
AZMEX I3 19 MAR 2019
Asylum seekers waiting in Mexico arrive for hearings in US
Elliot Spagat, Associated Press
Updated 2:19 pm CDT, Tuesday, March 19, 2019
https://www.lmtonline.com/news/texas/article/Asylum-seekers-waiting-in-Mexico-arrive-for-13700296.php?utm_campaign=hpborder
Two men, both of Honduras, walk with attorneys as they cross into the United States to begin their asylum cases, Tuesday, March 19, 2019, in Tijuana, Mexico. A group of about five men were on their way to report for their first hearing under a new policy to make asylum seekers wait in Mexico while their case winds through U.S. immigration court. Photo: Gregory Bull, AP
IMAGE 1 OF 7
Two men, both of Honduras, walk with attorneys as they cross into the United States to begin their asylum cases, Tuesday, March 19, 2019, in Tijuana, Mexico. A group of about five men were on their way to ... more
SAN DIEGO (AP) — The first scheduled hearings under a new Trump administration policy to make asylum seekers wait in Mexico while their cases wind through U.S. immigration courts will be held Tuesday in San Diego.
The initial appearances come three days before a federal judge in San Francisco hears arguments by advocacy groups to halt enforcement of the policy, which went into effect Jan. 29 in San Diego and was expanded last week to Calexico, California.
Recommended Video
Administration officials say they intend to expand the policy along the entire U.S.-Mexico border.
The shift comes as more asylum-seeking families from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador arrive at the U.S. border as they flee pervasive gang violence and poverty.
The change has been introduced slowly, with an average of 40 people a week being returned to Tijuana from San Diego in the first six weeks.
Mexico has agreed to accept up to 120 a week.
The shift followed months of high-level talks with Mexico about asylum-seeking families who have been released into the U.S. while their cases took years to get through immigration court.
The administration hopes that forcing people to wait in Mexico will discourage weak claims and help reduce a court backlog of more than 800,000 cases.
Critics say the policy forces Central American asylum seekers to wait in dangerous environments such as Tijuana, which had more than 2,500 homicides last year, and invites other problems, including difficulty finding legal advice in Mexico.
Mexico has described the U.S. shift as a unilateral move by the Trump administration — a characterization that U.S. officials readily acknowledge. However, officials in Mexico say humanitarian reasons led them to temporarily allow the asylum seekers to wait in that country.
One asylum-seeker from Honduras reporting for his first hearing Tuesday said his wait has been problem-free.
"It hasn't been difficult so far," he said after meeting U.S. authorities at San Diego's San Ysidro crossing, the nation's busiest border crossing. "I thank my lawyer because she hasn't left us alone. She's always been with us."
The man would only identify himself by his first name, Ariel. His home country is wracked by gang-fueled violence, and many asylum-seekers worry about retribution against their families still there or them if they are deported.
Some immigrants have had trouble finding legal help. A list of no- or low-cost legal aid providers that was given to them by U.S. officials includes organizations that refuse to offer advice on Mexican soil or have had to overcome serious reservations about doing so.
Initial asylum hearings in downtown San Diego are scheduled within 45 days of making a claim, and administration officials hope to put them on a fast track.
On the day of their hearing, asylum seekers are told to report to the border crossing for temporary admission to the U.S. and a ride to court. If their cases aren't completed, they are escorted back to Mexico to continue waiting.
In an apparent scheduling glitch, some hearings were moved up to last Thursday, The San Diego-Union Tribune reported. Two of three people scheduled to appear didn't make it to the border crossing in time.
END
Asylum seekers waiting in Mexico arrive for hearings in US
Elliot Spagat, Associated Press
Updated 2:19 pm CDT, Tuesday, March 19, 2019
https://www.lmtonline.com/news/texas/article/Asylum-seekers-waiting-in-Mexico-arrive-for-13700296.php?utm_campaign=hpborder
Two men, both of Honduras, walk with attorneys as they cross into the United States to begin their asylum cases, Tuesday, March 19, 2019, in Tijuana, Mexico. A group of about five men were on their way to report for their first hearing under a new policy to make asylum seekers wait in Mexico while their case winds through U.S. immigration court. Photo: Gregory Bull, AP
IMAGE 1 OF 7
Two men, both of Honduras, walk with attorneys as they cross into the United States to begin their asylum cases, Tuesday, March 19, 2019, in Tijuana, Mexico. A group of about five men were on their way to ... more
SAN DIEGO (AP) — The first scheduled hearings under a new Trump administration policy to make asylum seekers wait in Mexico while their cases wind through U.S. immigration courts will be held Tuesday in San Diego.
The initial appearances come three days before a federal judge in San Francisco hears arguments by advocacy groups to halt enforcement of the policy, which went into effect Jan. 29 in San Diego and was expanded last week to Calexico, California.
Recommended Video
Administration officials say they intend to expand the policy along the entire U.S.-Mexico border.
The shift comes as more asylum-seeking families from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador arrive at the U.S. border as they flee pervasive gang violence and poverty.
The change has been introduced slowly, with an average of 40 people a week being returned to Tijuana from San Diego in the first six weeks.
Mexico has agreed to accept up to 120 a week.
The shift followed months of high-level talks with Mexico about asylum-seeking families who have been released into the U.S. while their cases took years to get through immigration court.
The administration hopes that forcing people to wait in Mexico will discourage weak claims and help reduce a court backlog of more than 800,000 cases.
Critics say the policy forces Central American asylum seekers to wait in dangerous environments such as Tijuana, which had more than 2,500 homicides last year, and invites other problems, including difficulty finding legal advice in Mexico.
Mexico has described the U.S. shift as a unilateral move by the Trump administration — a characterization that U.S. officials readily acknowledge. However, officials in Mexico say humanitarian reasons led them to temporarily allow the asylum seekers to wait in that country.
One asylum-seeker from Honduras reporting for his first hearing Tuesday said his wait has been problem-free.
"It hasn't been difficult so far," he said after meeting U.S. authorities at San Diego's San Ysidro crossing, the nation's busiest border crossing. "I thank my lawyer because she hasn't left us alone. She's always been with us."
The man would only identify himself by his first name, Ariel. His home country is wracked by gang-fueled violence, and many asylum-seekers worry about retribution against their families still there or them if they are deported.
Some immigrants have had trouble finding legal help. A list of no- or low-cost legal aid providers that was given to them by U.S. officials includes organizations that refuse to offer advice on Mexican soil or have had to overcome serious reservations about doing so.
Initial asylum hearings in downtown San Diego are scheduled within 45 days of making a claim, and administration officials hope to put them on a fast track.
On the day of their hearing, asylum seekers are told to report to the border crossing for temporary admission to the U.S. and a ride to court. If their cases aren't completed, they are escorted back to Mexico to continue waiting.
In an apparent scheduling glitch, some hearings were moved up to last Thursday, The San Diego-Union Tribune reported. Two of three people scheduled to appear didn't make it to the border crossing in time.
END
Monday, March 18, 2019
AZMEX I3-2 15-3-19
AZMEX I3-2 15 MAR 2019
Greyhound says migrant families must wait outside bus stations
BY ASSOCIATED PRESS | MARCH 15, 2019 AT 10:58 AM
UPDATED: MARCH 15, 2019 AT 12:45 PM
http://ktar.com/story/2486616/greyhound-says-migrant-families-must-wait-outside-bus-stations/
PHOENIX — Greyhound Lines Inc. is no longer allowing U.S. authorities to drop off immigrant families inside bus stations,
forcing those who have been released from custody to wait outside until they have a ticket.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed to The Associated Press on Friday
that it had been asked to drop off migrants outside facilities instead of busing them in.
A
ICE for years has dropped off migrants at Greyhound stations, largely in Phoenix,
after releasing them pending court hearings to decide whether they can stay in the country.
( Any bets on how many will ever show up? )
From the stations, they travel to their intended destination in the United States.
Greyhound spokeswoman Crystal Booker said the company is experiencing an "unprecedented increase of individuals"
at certain bus terminals and that travelers need tickets to get in.
She said the policy applies to anyone who lacks a ticket.
"Our priority is to safely and efficiently get customers to their destinations," Booker said in a statement.
Immigrants who are released by ICE don't usually have prior notice and can't make travel arrangements until they arrive at the station.
Most of them don't have money and have to wait on a relative or advocacy group to buy their ticket.
A huge number of Central American families have traveled to U.S. in the past few months,
many who say they are fleeing violence and plan to seek asylum.
Others say they are escaping extreme poverty.
In Arizona alone between Dec. 21, 2018, and March 5,
ICE said it had processed for release about 14,500 people who came as families.
Outside the station in Phoenix, about 15 adults and five children waited in a shaded area near a parking lot Thursday.
Some said they had been there for about seven hours.
The federal agency relies on volunteer organizations, many of them faith-based groups, to help families with travel and meals.
Connie Phillips, president and CEO of Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest,
said she doesn't blame Greyhound for its policy
but rather immigration officials for not having a long-term, sustainable way to deal with releasing migrants.
"Just dropping people off in a place that's not meant to be able to welcome and assist them is not a solution,
and we have to work together to create a viable response to this increased need and stop this chaos," Phillips said.
Immigration authorities say they release families at bus stations only when volunteer groups run out of space.
"ICE wants to mitigate strains placed on resources in the local community
as we continue to see high volumes of families crossing the border,"
spokeswoman Yasmeen Pitts O'Keefe said.
Phillips said dozens of volunteers have created a network to respond to the bus station in Phoenix when immigrants are dropped off.
They bring food and water, allow migrants to use volunteers' cellphones and help coordinate travel.
Phillips said the groups that help out are able to temporarily house about 700 people
in churches and congregants' homes in the Phoenix area, but that doesn't suffice.
The practice of dropping migrants at Greyhound stations isn't limited to Phoenix, but it's where it happens most often.
In San Diego, ICE takes families directly from a Customs and Border Protection station
to a shelter run by non-governmental organizations.
Authorities have dropped off migrants at the bus station only in some cases.
In McAllen, Texas, migrants are dropped off at a Catholic Charities shelter.
END
Greyhound says migrant families must wait outside bus stations
BY ASSOCIATED PRESS | MARCH 15, 2019 AT 10:58 AM
UPDATED: MARCH 15, 2019 AT 12:45 PM
http://ktar.com/story/2486616/greyhound-says-migrant-families-must-wait-outside-bus-stations/
PHOENIX — Greyhound Lines Inc. is no longer allowing U.S. authorities to drop off immigrant families inside bus stations,
forcing those who have been released from custody to wait outside until they have a ticket.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed to The Associated Press on Friday
that it had been asked to drop off migrants outside facilities instead of busing them in.
A
ICE for years has dropped off migrants at Greyhound stations, largely in Phoenix,
after releasing them pending court hearings to decide whether they can stay in the country.
( Any bets on how many will ever show up? )
From the stations, they travel to their intended destination in the United States.
Greyhound spokeswoman Crystal Booker said the company is experiencing an "unprecedented increase of individuals"
at certain bus terminals and that travelers need tickets to get in.
She said the policy applies to anyone who lacks a ticket.
"Our priority is to safely and efficiently get customers to their destinations," Booker said in a statement.
Immigrants who are released by ICE don't usually have prior notice and can't make travel arrangements until they arrive at the station.
Most of them don't have money and have to wait on a relative or advocacy group to buy their ticket.
A huge number of Central American families have traveled to U.S. in the past few months,
many who say they are fleeing violence and plan to seek asylum.
Others say they are escaping extreme poverty.
In Arizona alone between Dec. 21, 2018, and March 5,
ICE said it had processed for release about 14,500 people who came as families.
Outside the station in Phoenix, about 15 adults and five children waited in a shaded area near a parking lot Thursday.
Some said they had been there for about seven hours.
The federal agency relies on volunteer organizations, many of them faith-based groups, to help families with travel and meals.
Connie Phillips, president and CEO of Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest,
said she doesn't blame Greyhound for its policy
but rather immigration officials for not having a long-term, sustainable way to deal with releasing migrants.
"Just dropping people off in a place that's not meant to be able to welcome and assist them is not a solution,
and we have to work together to create a viable response to this increased need and stop this chaos," Phillips said.
Immigration authorities say they release families at bus stations only when volunteer groups run out of space.
"ICE wants to mitigate strains placed on resources in the local community
as we continue to see high volumes of families crossing the border,"
spokeswoman Yasmeen Pitts O'Keefe said.
Phillips said dozens of volunteers have created a network to respond to the bus station in Phoenix when immigrants are dropped off.
They bring food and water, allow migrants to use volunteers' cellphones and help coordinate travel.
Phillips said the groups that help out are able to temporarily house about 700 people
in churches and congregants' homes in the Phoenix area, but that doesn't suffice.
The practice of dropping migrants at Greyhound stations isn't limited to Phoenix, but it's where it happens most often.
In San Diego, ICE takes families directly from a Customs and Border Protection station
to a shelter run by non-governmental organizations.
Authorities have dropped off migrants at the bus station only in some cases.
In McAllen, Texas, migrants are dropped off at a Catholic Charities shelter.
END
AZMEX I3 15-3-19
AZMEX I3 15 MAR 2019
Immigrant smugglers target NM border
BY MIKE GALLAGHER / JOURNAL INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER
Published: Thursday, March 14th, 2019 at 11:35pm
Updated: Thursday, March 14th, 2019 at 11:35pm
https://www.abqjournal.com/1292230/immigrant-smugglers-target-nm-border.html
More than 60 immigrants from Guatemala and Ecuador were kept in this shed attached to a fifth-wheel trailer. (Source: Federal Court Exhibit)
Copyright © 2019 Albuquerque Journal
From high-end operations catering to Brazilians to overcrowded stash houses in rural New Mexico, organized criminal groups are smuggling immigrants into the U.S. through New Mexico's southern border using the crush of asylum seekers from Central America and elsewhere as cover.
Homeland Security Investigations and Border Patrol agents have identified several organized criminal groups that have been smuggling immigrants across the southern border to ultimate destinations in Alabama, New Jersey, Tennessee and elsewhere.
Over the last year, federal agents have arrested human smugglers in the small towns of Hachita in New Mexico's Bootheel and Dexter south of Roswell as well as Albuquerque and Birmingham, Ala.
On Wednesday, Maximo Gonzalez-Sebastian, one of three men arrested in connection with a stash house in Roswell, was convicted in federal court in Las Cruces on charges of hostage taking and conspiracy. Gonzalez-Sebastian, who had a Guatemalan passport on him when he was arrested, could face up to 20 years in federal prison.
Two of his associates have already pleaded guilty and also await sentencing.
U.S. Attorney John C. Anderson
"We are making a concentrated effort to investigate and prosecute organizations involved in human trafficking," U.S. Attorney John C. Anderson said, adding that includes both smugglers and those taking advantage of asylum seekers.
"It is a more diverse immigrant population than we've seen in the past," he said. "New Mexico is primarily a transit point" for people entering the country either illegally or through the asylum process.
Efforts to control the numbers of people arriving at the official ports of entry seeking asylum have led people to "self surrender" to Border Patrol agents at more remote areas of the border like the small port of entry in New Mexico's Bootheel at Antelope Wells or the deserts outside Deming.
Under U.S. law, migrant families who have requested asylum are typically released to join relatives or sponsors recruited by charities in other parts of the country. They will be issued a Notice to Appear in immigration court for their asylum hearing.
This has led to a flood of asylum seeking immigrants – more than 76,000 in the El Paso sector, which includes all of New Mexico's border, in February alone. Customs and Border Patrol agents say they have been so overwhelmed in processing and finding medical attention when needed that they are concerned they are missing criminal smuggling operations and drug runners.
Business booming
The asylum wave is a boom for smugglers.
In a recently unsealed search warrant, agents from Homeland Security Investigations said three Guatemalan families independently gave agents at the Border Patrol headquarters in Deming the same contact information – the phone number and address for what turned out to be a billiards parlor in Nashville, Tenn.
One woman told the agents she was recruited and smuggled through Mexico by a man named "Geronimo" and contacted him at the Tennessee phone number while they traveled through Mexico.
There was no answer when the Journal called the telephone number several times this week.
Agents believe "Geronimo" is connected to the Bartolo Alien Smuggling Organization, which has operated in Mexico and Guatemala for a number of years, generating more than $5 million for the organization.
The promises Geronimo makes are similar to other smugglers', but his have been consistent for the last several years.
One of the women who talked to agents said she made a down payment of 15,000 quetzals (approximately $1,950 U.S.) for her and her son to be smuggled into the U.S. She was promised a job in the U.S. to pay the remainder of the smuggling fee.
END
Immigrant smugglers target NM border
BY MIKE GALLAGHER / JOURNAL INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER
Published: Thursday, March 14th, 2019 at 11:35pm
Updated: Thursday, March 14th, 2019 at 11:35pm
https://www.abqjournal.com/1292230/immigrant-smugglers-target-nm-border.html
More than 60 immigrants from Guatemala and Ecuador were kept in this shed attached to a fifth-wheel trailer. (Source: Federal Court Exhibit)
Copyright © 2019 Albuquerque Journal
From high-end operations catering to Brazilians to overcrowded stash houses in rural New Mexico, organized criminal groups are smuggling immigrants into the U.S. through New Mexico's southern border using the crush of asylum seekers from Central America and elsewhere as cover.
Homeland Security Investigations and Border Patrol agents have identified several organized criminal groups that have been smuggling immigrants across the southern border to ultimate destinations in Alabama, New Jersey, Tennessee and elsewhere.
Over the last year, federal agents have arrested human smugglers in the small towns of Hachita in New Mexico's Bootheel and Dexter south of Roswell as well as Albuquerque and Birmingham, Ala.
On Wednesday, Maximo Gonzalez-Sebastian, one of three men arrested in connection with a stash house in Roswell, was convicted in federal court in Las Cruces on charges of hostage taking and conspiracy. Gonzalez-Sebastian, who had a Guatemalan passport on him when he was arrested, could face up to 20 years in federal prison.
Two of his associates have already pleaded guilty and also await sentencing.
U.S. Attorney John C. Anderson
"We are making a concentrated effort to investigate and prosecute organizations involved in human trafficking," U.S. Attorney John C. Anderson said, adding that includes both smugglers and those taking advantage of asylum seekers.
"It is a more diverse immigrant population than we've seen in the past," he said. "New Mexico is primarily a transit point" for people entering the country either illegally or through the asylum process.
Efforts to control the numbers of people arriving at the official ports of entry seeking asylum have led people to "self surrender" to Border Patrol agents at more remote areas of the border like the small port of entry in New Mexico's Bootheel at Antelope Wells or the deserts outside Deming.
Under U.S. law, migrant families who have requested asylum are typically released to join relatives or sponsors recruited by charities in other parts of the country. They will be issued a Notice to Appear in immigration court for their asylum hearing.
This has led to a flood of asylum seeking immigrants – more than 76,000 in the El Paso sector, which includes all of New Mexico's border, in February alone. Customs and Border Patrol agents say they have been so overwhelmed in processing and finding medical attention when needed that they are concerned they are missing criminal smuggling operations and drug runners.
Business booming
The asylum wave is a boom for smugglers.
In a recently unsealed search warrant, agents from Homeland Security Investigations said three Guatemalan families independently gave agents at the Border Patrol headquarters in Deming the same contact information – the phone number and address for what turned out to be a billiards parlor in Nashville, Tenn.
One woman told the agents she was recruited and smuggled through Mexico by a man named "Geronimo" and contacted him at the Tennessee phone number while they traveled through Mexico.
There was no answer when the Journal called the telephone number several times this week.
Agents believe "Geronimo" is connected to the Bartolo Alien Smuggling Organization, which has operated in Mexico and Guatemala for a number of years, generating more than $5 million for the organization.
The promises Geronimo makes are similar to other smugglers', but his have been consistent for the last several years.
One of the women who talked to agents said she made a down payment of 15,000 quetzals (approximately $1,950 U.S.) for her and her son to be smuggled into the U.S. She was promised a job in the U.S. to pay the remainder of the smuggling fee.
END
AZMEX UPDATE 18-3-19
AZMEX UPDATE 18 MAR 2019
Note: the corrupt government of Mexico has worked for years to disarm the law abiding people.
The criminal cartels / elements / gangs remain unmolested and well armed.
With many weapons supplied by the Obama regime .
Gracias
Security in Nogales is down the street: Regidor
Details Published on Friday March 15, 2019,
Written by Francisco Espinoza / El Diario
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=126301
Nogales, Son
The levels of insecurity in Nogales have increased exponentially, placing the Nogalesans in a state of defenselessness due to the scarce attention
of the authorities to this problem.
The ruler of the National Action Party (PAN), Guillermo Cruz Davison criticized the null response of the municipality to contain crimes
in tort to the heritage of the people of Nogalenses.
"Security is on the street," he said, "every day crimes, murders, robberies, assaults, destruction of property increase a
nd we do not find a justification for not attacking them."
Although in the police corporation there are highly qualified elements, he said, with the necessary preparation to respond to any situation,
for some reason they are in positions that do not allow them to carry out their functions.
Every day is recorded at least one murder or the disappearance of a person, he said,
without observing the implementation of a strategy to contain or reduce crime.
"The security situation in the city is getting worse every day," he said, "in addition to the damage caused by the disapproval of elements
in the Control and Confidence test, which has many edges and leaves many police officers out of service. "
The municipal authorities must take into account the population's feelings regarding security, he added,
applying strategies to reduce the crime rate
end
Note: the corrupt government of Mexico has worked for years to disarm the law abiding people.
The criminal cartels / elements / gangs remain unmolested and well armed.
With many weapons supplied by the Obama regime .
Gracias
Security in Nogales is down the street: Regidor
Details Published on Friday March 15, 2019,
Written by Francisco Espinoza / El Diario
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=126301
Nogales, Son
The levels of insecurity in Nogales have increased exponentially, placing the Nogalesans in a state of defenselessness due to the scarce attention
of the authorities to this problem.
The ruler of the National Action Party (PAN), Guillermo Cruz Davison criticized the null response of the municipality to contain crimes
in tort to the heritage of the people of Nogalenses.
"Security is on the street," he said, "every day crimes, murders, robberies, assaults, destruction of property increase a
nd we do not find a justification for not attacking them."
Although in the police corporation there are highly qualified elements, he said, with the necessary preparation to respond to any situation,
for some reason they are in positions that do not allow them to carry out their functions.
Every day is recorded at least one murder or the disappearance of a person, he said,
without observing the implementation of a strategy to contain or reduce crime.
"The security situation in the city is getting worse every day," he said, "in addition to the damage caused by the disapproval of elements
in the Control and Confidence test, which has many edges and leaves many police officers out of service. "
The municipal authorities must take into account the population's feelings regarding security, he added,
applying strategies to reduce the crime rate
end
Fwd: Rescue In Our Back Yard
Note: YOU will pay for their medical care.
thx
Begin forwarded message:From:Subject: Fwd: Rescue In Our Back YardDate: March 18, 2019 at 9:08:11 AM MSTTo:
-------- Forwarded Message --------
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents rescued five migrants from freezing to death in a mountainous region of the Arizona-Mexico border.
Agents assigned to the Tucson Sector received information regarding a 911 call in late Wednesday evening from a man claiming to be stranded with four other people on a snow-covered mountain. The agents notified U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air and Marine Operations (AMO) and other law enforcement agencies to assist in the search, according to information obtained from Tucson Sector Border Patrol officials.
Photo: U.S. Border Patrol/Tucson Sector
The search and rescue operation began on Wednesday in the Santa Rita Mountains for the missing group. Search teams from the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office and the Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS) joined the federal agencies in the search. By about 1 a.m. Thursday morning, a DPS aircrew spotted the group on a snow-capped mountain. Due to conditions in the area, Border Patrol rescue crews had to wait until daybreak to begin the rescue operation, officials stated.
Border Patrol Search, Trauma, and Rescue (BORSTAR) teams began the hike to the group shortly after daybreak and safely reached their location. The agents identified the lost people as illegal aliens from Mexico and Honduras. Agents determined the three Honduran nationals and the two Mexican nationals were suffering from exposure to the cold and injuries to their extremities.
Photo: U.S. Border Patrol/Tucson Sector
An AMO helicopter arrived on the scene and airlifted the lost migrants to a UH-60 helicopter. The aircrew transported the migrants to a nearby road where Green Valley Fire District first responders took over treatment and transportation to a local hospital.
Border Patrol officials stated they will take custody of the migrants following their release from the hospital and process them for immigration violations.
AZMEX I3 16-3-19
AZMEX I3 16 MAR 2019
Note: a very busy AZMEX March.
Investigators scramble to solve mystery just miles from the US-Mexico border
Theories abound ...
By: CNN EN ESPAÑOL'S REY RODRIGUEZ CONTRIBUTED TO THIS REPORT.
Posted: Mar 16, 2019 02:25 AM MDT
Updated: Mar 16, 2019 03:26 AM MDT
https://www.kvia.com/news/us-world/investigators-scramble-to-solve-mystery-just-miles-from-the-usmexico-border/1059983347
Getty Images
Honduran migrants walk toward the U.S.-Mexico border fence to cross over on Jan. 6, 2019, in Tijuana, Mexico.
A new caravan of migrants from Honduras left the country on Monday, with government officials warning them they could face prison time.
Related Content
Kelly dismisses need for wall along full US-Mexico border
DHS plans to expand 'Remain in Mexico' policy
Beto (Robert Francis) O'Rourke says he would take down wall between El Paso, Mexico
US to send asylum seekers to Mexico during immigration proceedings
Masked gunmen barged onto a bus in northern Mexico, carrying a list of names.
They left without firing a single shot, taking at least 19 passengers with them as they sped away from the scene.
And so far, they seem to have vanished without a trace.
Where did the missing passengers go?
It's a mystery that's left Mexican officials scrambling for answers as public pressure mounts.
Authorities are investigating what they've said may be a mass kidnapping, and Mexico's top leaders have offered several possible explanations in recent days.
They've revealed one key detail that's likely a big piece of the puzzle:
All the passengers the gunmen removed from the bus were likely migrants traveling through Mexico and heading to the United States.
And the theories authorities have presented have serious implications in the immigration debate on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.
Theory 1: The migrants were kidnapped
Officials at first tried to downplay the possibility the migrants were kidnapped, but later announced a national operation to find the missing migrants.
What we know so far:
Gunmen intercepted the bus March 7 along the highway that connects San Fernando, a town in the northern Mexican state of Tamaulipas,
with the city of Reynosa, which sits across the U.S. border from McAllen, Texas.
It took days for officials to reveal the incident -- something that's drawn criticism in Mexican media.
Officials have defended the delay, saying they weren't trying to hide information but were waiting to confirm facts before releasing them.
San Fernando was the site of a notorious migrant massacre less than a decade ago.
Investigators found the remains of 72 migrants at a house there in 2010.
The next year they found the remains of nearly 200 people in mass graves in the area while investigating cases of passengers kidnapped from buses.
But you don't have to go back that far to find other examples of kidnapped migrants in Tamaulipas, a cartel stronghold.
Just this week, authorities announced they'd rescued a group of 34 migrants who were being held there.
What experts say:
For years, advocates and analysts have warned that Central American migrants are often assaulted as they make their way north through Mexico.
In 2011, the country's human rights commission estimated that more than 11,000 migrants had been kidnapped in a six-month period.
Kidnappers take different approaches in different parts of the country, says Stephanie Leutert, director of the Mexico Security Initiative
at the University of Texas at Austin. In Tamaulipas, intercepting buses is a common tactic, says Leutert,
who co-authored a report analyzing migrant kidnappings last year.
"Armed cars stopping the bus, people with weapons getting on and pulling people off,
it's a modus operandi of kidnapping that fits clearly into a pattern," she says.
Maureen Meyer, director for Mexico and migrant rights at the Washington Office on Latin America,
says there's one thing that's notable about this most recent incident: It's getting a lot of attention.
But Meyer says she sees it as part of a "continuation of kidnappings" that Mexican authorities haven't done enough to investigate.
"Migrants are targeted for crimes in Mexico precisely because of their vulnerable status," she says.
"It has become a lucrative way for criminal groups to gain thousands of dollars per migrant as they're holding them for ransom."
Rafael Alonso Hernandez Lopez, who directs a doctoral program in migration studies at the Colegio de la Frontera Norte
(The College of the Northern Border) in Tijuana, said it's notable that Mexican officials are talking about what happened at all.
He noted it's the first such incident since Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador took office in December.
"The problem dates back years, and it's unfortunate that it keeps happening. …
Perhaps what's changing is that in the new administration there hadn't been any events like this, and they hadn't been made visible," he said.
"The fact that the federal government itself has made this situation public also speaks in another way."
Theory 2: The gunmen were smugglers the migrants contracted
As word spread of the migrants' disappearance, Lopez Obrador and one of his top national security officials floated the possibility Tuesday
that the migrants weren't kidnapped, but rather were simply meeting up with smugglers
they'd contracted to help them get across the US-Mexico border.
"There's a hypothesis that this is a way of getting to the U.S. territory.
It's not that they disappear, but that this is how they cross the border," Lopez Obrador told reporters.
What we know so far:
Mexican officials say they've been checking with authorities in Central America to see whether anyone has reported loved ones missing.
And so far, they haven't received any reports.
Mexican Security Minister Alfonso Durazo told reporters it's notable that no shots were fired when the gunmen boarded the bus,
and that only men were taken.
"Intelligence indicates that criminal groups that operate in the area offer services to transport migrants to the United States,"
Durazo told reporters Tuesday.
At a news conference Thursday, Mexico's defense secretary presented what he said were images of the bus crossing through a military checkpoint
more than an hour before the ambush. All 44 passengers aboard the bus were screened at the time, he said.
Authorities now believe the migrants onboard were carrying fake Mexican IDs, he said,
because personnel who checked passengers' documents didn't register any foreigners.
What experts say:
For Leutert, the idea that masked gunmen would ambush a bus as part of a smuggling deal doesn't add up.
"If you were just trying to meet, you would imagine you would just wait at the bus stop. It doesn't fit into the pattern of migrant smuggling," she says.
"And it fits into the pattern of migrant kidnapping that we see. That's why for me, these incidents are really concerning."
Jeremy Slack, an assistant professor at the University of Texas at El Paso who studies the impact of drug violence on migration,
says it's unclear whether authorities know more than they've let on so far.
But both theories Mexican officials have presented could turn out to be true.
The migrants may have hired smugglers, he said, who later decided they wanted more money
and decided to kidnap them rather than take them across the border.
"Just because you agree on something with a smuggler," Slack says, "doesn't mean the terms don't change."
And sometimes, he says, migrants make a smuggling deal with one criminal group, only to be intercepted by another along the way.
No matter which theory turns out to be true, there are major implications in the immigration debate
The timing of the migrants' disappearance is notable.
It comes as:
• U.S. authorities are increasingly forcing more migrants to stay in Mexico,
both by significantly limiting the numbers of people who may seek asylum daily at ports of entry,
and by sending a growing number of migrants who are seeking asylum back across the border to wait while their cases make their way through U.S. courts
• U.S. officials say the number of migrant families making their way to the border has spiked significantly,
and that migrants are increasingly arriving at the border in large groups
• Mexican officials vow that protecting the human rights of migrants is a top priority,
but Mexican border cities have struggled to handle the influx of migrants
Experts say this combination of factors could make what's already a volatile situation even worse.
"The border towns could become very unmanageable very quickly," says Meyer of the Washington Office on Latin America.
"Criminal groups also follow migrants because they're easy victims.
This may also impact the border communities in a way they haven't anticipated."
Leutert, of the University of Texas at Austin, says the brazen nature of the recent bus incident
seems like a throwback to more violent times along the border -- and that concerns her.
"To do a mass kidnapping, it's a lot more complicated than just throwing two people in the back of a car," she says.
"It requires a different level of sophistication and corruption. …
We haven't really seen any high-profile cases like this in a while."
End
Note: a very busy AZMEX March.
Investigators scramble to solve mystery just miles from the US-Mexico border
Theories abound ...
By: CNN EN ESPAÑOL'S REY RODRIGUEZ CONTRIBUTED TO THIS REPORT.
Posted: Mar 16, 2019 02:25 AM MDT
Updated: Mar 16, 2019 03:26 AM MDT
https://www.kvia.com/news/us-world/investigators-scramble-to-solve-mystery-just-miles-from-the-usmexico-border/1059983347
Getty Images
Honduran migrants walk toward the U.S.-Mexico border fence to cross over on Jan. 6, 2019, in Tijuana, Mexico.
A new caravan of migrants from Honduras left the country on Monday, with government officials warning them they could face prison time.
Related Content
Kelly dismisses need for wall along full US-Mexico border
DHS plans to expand 'Remain in Mexico' policy
Beto (Robert Francis) O'Rourke says he would take down wall between El Paso, Mexico
US to send asylum seekers to Mexico during immigration proceedings
Masked gunmen barged onto a bus in northern Mexico, carrying a list of names.
They left without firing a single shot, taking at least 19 passengers with them as they sped away from the scene.
And so far, they seem to have vanished without a trace.
Where did the missing passengers go?
It's a mystery that's left Mexican officials scrambling for answers as public pressure mounts.
Authorities are investigating what they've said may be a mass kidnapping, and Mexico's top leaders have offered several possible explanations in recent days.
They've revealed one key detail that's likely a big piece of the puzzle:
All the passengers the gunmen removed from the bus were likely migrants traveling through Mexico and heading to the United States.
And the theories authorities have presented have serious implications in the immigration debate on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.
Theory 1: The migrants were kidnapped
Officials at first tried to downplay the possibility the migrants were kidnapped, but later announced a national operation to find the missing migrants.
What we know so far:
Gunmen intercepted the bus March 7 along the highway that connects San Fernando, a town in the northern Mexican state of Tamaulipas,
with the city of Reynosa, which sits across the U.S. border from McAllen, Texas.
It took days for officials to reveal the incident -- something that's drawn criticism in Mexican media.
Officials have defended the delay, saying they weren't trying to hide information but were waiting to confirm facts before releasing them.
San Fernando was the site of a notorious migrant massacre less than a decade ago.
Investigators found the remains of 72 migrants at a house there in 2010.
The next year they found the remains of nearly 200 people in mass graves in the area while investigating cases of passengers kidnapped from buses.
But you don't have to go back that far to find other examples of kidnapped migrants in Tamaulipas, a cartel stronghold.
Just this week, authorities announced they'd rescued a group of 34 migrants who were being held there.
What experts say:
For years, advocates and analysts have warned that Central American migrants are often assaulted as they make their way north through Mexico.
In 2011, the country's human rights commission estimated that more than 11,000 migrants had been kidnapped in a six-month period.
Kidnappers take different approaches in different parts of the country, says Stephanie Leutert, director of the Mexico Security Initiative
at the University of Texas at Austin. In Tamaulipas, intercepting buses is a common tactic, says Leutert,
who co-authored a report analyzing migrant kidnappings last year.
"Armed cars stopping the bus, people with weapons getting on and pulling people off,
it's a modus operandi of kidnapping that fits clearly into a pattern," she says.
Maureen Meyer, director for Mexico and migrant rights at the Washington Office on Latin America,
says there's one thing that's notable about this most recent incident: It's getting a lot of attention.
But Meyer says she sees it as part of a "continuation of kidnappings" that Mexican authorities haven't done enough to investigate.
"Migrants are targeted for crimes in Mexico precisely because of their vulnerable status," she says.
"It has become a lucrative way for criminal groups to gain thousands of dollars per migrant as they're holding them for ransom."
Rafael Alonso Hernandez Lopez, who directs a doctoral program in migration studies at the Colegio de la Frontera Norte
(The College of the Northern Border) in Tijuana, said it's notable that Mexican officials are talking about what happened at all.
He noted it's the first such incident since Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador took office in December.
"The problem dates back years, and it's unfortunate that it keeps happening. …
Perhaps what's changing is that in the new administration there hadn't been any events like this, and they hadn't been made visible," he said.
"The fact that the federal government itself has made this situation public also speaks in another way."
Theory 2: The gunmen were smugglers the migrants contracted
As word spread of the migrants' disappearance, Lopez Obrador and one of his top national security officials floated the possibility Tuesday
that the migrants weren't kidnapped, but rather were simply meeting up with smugglers
they'd contracted to help them get across the US-Mexico border.
"There's a hypothesis that this is a way of getting to the U.S. territory.
It's not that they disappear, but that this is how they cross the border," Lopez Obrador told reporters.
What we know so far:
Mexican officials say they've been checking with authorities in Central America to see whether anyone has reported loved ones missing.
And so far, they haven't received any reports.
Mexican Security Minister Alfonso Durazo told reporters it's notable that no shots were fired when the gunmen boarded the bus,
and that only men were taken.
"Intelligence indicates that criminal groups that operate in the area offer services to transport migrants to the United States,"
Durazo told reporters Tuesday.
At a news conference Thursday, Mexico's defense secretary presented what he said were images of the bus crossing through a military checkpoint
more than an hour before the ambush. All 44 passengers aboard the bus were screened at the time, he said.
Authorities now believe the migrants onboard were carrying fake Mexican IDs, he said,
because personnel who checked passengers' documents didn't register any foreigners.
What experts say:
For Leutert, the idea that masked gunmen would ambush a bus as part of a smuggling deal doesn't add up.
"If you were just trying to meet, you would imagine you would just wait at the bus stop. It doesn't fit into the pattern of migrant smuggling," she says.
"And it fits into the pattern of migrant kidnapping that we see. That's why for me, these incidents are really concerning."
Jeremy Slack, an assistant professor at the University of Texas at El Paso who studies the impact of drug violence on migration,
says it's unclear whether authorities know more than they've let on so far.
But both theories Mexican officials have presented could turn out to be true.
The migrants may have hired smugglers, he said, who later decided they wanted more money
and decided to kidnap them rather than take them across the border.
"Just because you agree on something with a smuggler," Slack says, "doesn't mean the terms don't change."
And sometimes, he says, migrants make a smuggling deal with one criminal group, only to be intercepted by another along the way.
No matter which theory turns out to be true, there are major implications in the immigration debate
The timing of the migrants' disappearance is notable.
It comes as:
• U.S. authorities are increasingly forcing more migrants to stay in Mexico,
both by significantly limiting the numbers of people who may seek asylum daily at ports of entry,
and by sending a growing number of migrants who are seeking asylum back across the border to wait while their cases make their way through U.S. courts
• U.S. officials say the number of migrant families making their way to the border has spiked significantly,
and that migrants are increasingly arriving at the border in large groups
• Mexican officials vow that protecting the human rights of migrants is a top priority,
but Mexican border cities have struggled to handle the influx of migrants
Experts say this combination of factors could make what's already a volatile situation even worse.
"The border towns could become very unmanageable very quickly," says Meyer of the Washington Office on Latin America.
"Criminal groups also follow migrants because they're easy victims.
This may also impact the border communities in a way they haven't anticipated."
Leutert, of the University of Texas at Austin, says the brazen nature of the recent bus incident
seems like a throwback to more violent times along the border -- and that concerns her.
"To do a mass kidnapping, it's a lot more complicated than just throwing two people in the back of a car," she says.
"It requires a different level of sophistication and corruption. …
We haven't really seen any high-profile cases like this in a while."
End
Saturday, March 16, 2019
AZMEX UPDATE 16-3-19
AZMEX UPDATE 16 MAR 2019
U.S. officials: 30,000 fentanyl pills seized on Arizona Indian reservation
BY ASSOCIATED PRESS
MARCH 16, 2019 AT 9:40 AM
http://ktar.com/story/2488437/u-s-officials-30000-fentanyl-pills-seized-on-arizona-indian-reservation/
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — U.S. officials say they've seized 30,000 fentanyl pills that were being trafficked by a Mexican drug cartel
on an Arizona Indian reservation that sits on the U.S.-Mexico border.
The Interior Department Law Enforcement Task Force on Opioids said Friday the seizure was part of a recent operation
that swept up $700,000 worth of illegal and controlled substances in four border states.
The joint operation with the Bureau of Indian Affairs Drug Enforcement
began as an investigation into large amounts of fentanyl pills being transported from Mexico through points of entry
on the Tohono O'odham Nation south of Tucson.
END
Hard drug smugglers intercepted by CBP officers at Port of San Luis
March 15, 2019 at 3:38 PM MST - Updated March 15 at 3:38 PM
http://www.kold.com/2019/03/15/hard-drug-smugglers-intercepted-by-cbp-officers-port-san-luis/
TUCSON, AZ (KOLD News 13) - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers arrested a San Luis, Sonora, Mexico,
man and Phoenix woman Wednesday
for separate alleged attempts to smuggle 58 pounds of methamphetamine and heroin through the Port of San Luis.
Officers referred a 39-year-old Mexican national for additional inspection of his Chevy sedan as he attempted to enter the U.S. early Wednesday morning.
After a CBP narcotics detection canine alerted to a scent it was trained to detect coming from within the front bumper,
a search led to the discovery of multiple packages of narcotics.
The drugs were identified as nearly 55 pounds of meth, worth an estimated value of nearly $164,000
as well as almost three pounds of heroin, worth more than $74,000.
Later that morning, officers at the pedestrian lanes referred a 27-year-old Phoenix woman for further inspection as she attempted to enter the U.S.
After a CBP canine alerted to the presence of drugs, officers searched and located a single package of meth within her undergarments.
The package was determined to be just over a pound of meth, worth more than $3,000.
Officers seized the drugs and the vehicle, while both subjects were arrested
and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations.
Federal law allows officers to charge individuals by complaint, a method that allows the filing of charges for criminal activity
without inferring guilt.
An individual is presumed innocent unless and until competent evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
CBP's Office of Field Operations is the primary organization within Homeland Security tasked with an anti-terrorism mission at our nation's ports.
CBP officers screen all people, vehicles and goods entering the United States while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel.
Their mission also includes carrying out border-related duties, including narcotics interdiction,
enforcing immigration and trade laws, and protecting the nation's food and agriculture industry from pests and diseases.
END
U.S. officials: 30,000 fentanyl pills seized on Arizona Indian reservation
BY ASSOCIATED PRESS
MARCH 16, 2019 AT 9:40 AM
http://ktar.com/story/2488437/u-s-officials-30000-fentanyl-pills-seized-on-arizona-indian-reservation/
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — U.S. officials say they've seized 30,000 fentanyl pills that were being trafficked by a Mexican drug cartel
on an Arizona Indian reservation that sits on the U.S.-Mexico border.
The Interior Department Law Enforcement Task Force on Opioids said Friday the seizure was part of a recent operation
that swept up $700,000 worth of illegal and controlled substances in four border states.
The joint operation with the Bureau of Indian Affairs Drug Enforcement
began as an investigation into large amounts of fentanyl pills being transported from Mexico through points of entry
on the Tohono O'odham Nation south of Tucson.
END
Hard drug smugglers intercepted by CBP officers at Port of San Luis
March 15, 2019 at 3:38 PM MST - Updated March 15 at 3:38 PM
http://www.kold.com/2019/03/15/hard-drug-smugglers-intercepted-by-cbp-officers-port-san-luis/
TUCSON, AZ (KOLD News 13) - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers arrested a San Luis, Sonora, Mexico,
man and Phoenix woman Wednesday
for separate alleged attempts to smuggle 58 pounds of methamphetamine and heroin through the Port of San Luis.
Officers referred a 39-year-old Mexican national for additional inspection of his Chevy sedan as he attempted to enter the U.S. early Wednesday morning.
After a CBP narcotics detection canine alerted to a scent it was trained to detect coming from within the front bumper,
a search led to the discovery of multiple packages of narcotics.
The drugs were identified as nearly 55 pounds of meth, worth an estimated value of nearly $164,000
as well as almost three pounds of heroin, worth more than $74,000.
Later that morning, officers at the pedestrian lanes referred a 27-year-old Phoenix woman for further inspection as she attempted to enter the U.S.
After a CBP canine alerted to the presence of drugs, officers searched and located a single package of meth within her undergarments.
The package was determined to be just over a pound of meth, worth more than $3,000.
Officers seized the drugs and the vehicle, while both subjects were arrested
and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations.
Federal law allows officers to charge individuals by complaint, a method that allows the filing of charges for criminal activity
without inferring guilt.
An individual is presumed innocent unless and until competent evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
CBP's Office of Field Operations is the primary organization within Homeland Security tasked with an anti-terrorism mission at our nation's ports.
CBP officers screen all people, vehicles and goods entering the United States while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel.
Their mission also includes carrying out border-related duties, including narcotics interdiction,
enforcing immigration and trade laws, and protecting the nation's food and agriculture industry from pests and diseases.
END
AZMEX UPDATE 15-3-19
AZMEX UPDATE 15 MAR 2019
PD: 15,000 fentanyl pills seized in west Phoenix motel
Posted: 1:45 PM, Mar 15, 2019 Updated: 1:51 PM, Mar 15, 2019
By: Joe Enea
https://www.abc15.com/news/crime/pd-15-000-fentanyl-pills-seized-in-west-phoenix-motel
Emmanuel Romero Hernandez.jpg
PHOENIX — Police seized 15,000 fentanyl pills and more than $9,000 in cash in a bust at a west Phoenix motel.
Narcotics detectives were called to the Motel 6 near 59th Avenue and McDowell Road on Tuesday,
after Phoenix police apprehended a woman inside one of the rooms and noticed paraphernalia.
In the motel room, officers reportedly saw drug ledgers and rubber bands.
After detaining 38-year-old Emmanuel Romero Hernandez, police searched the room and allegedly found 15,000 fentanyl pills,
two handguns, scales, numerous cell phones, and more than $9,000 in cash.
Hernandez allegedly told police that he was given $5,000 to hold onto the drugs by two men he met the day before.
Hernandez has been charged with narcotic drug possession, money laundering, and weapons misconduct.
END
They seize 300 packages of marijuana in Fiscal Precinct
Details Published on Thursday March 14, 2019,
Written by César Barragán / El Diario
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=126247
Nogales, Son
Personnel from 45 / a. Zona Militar based in Nogales, Sonora, secured more than 300 pressed packages containing marijuana
that were hidden in the box of a trailer that tried to cross into the United States through the Nogales POE.
The facts were recorded before noon yesterday when military personnel detected anomalies in one of the cargo boxes of a trailer
trying to cross into the neighboring country, which according to official documentation transported transformers.
For this reason, the military forces carried out the inspection of the cargo locating inside the truck dozens of pressed packages,
made with gray tape containing the drug.
For this reason, with the support of the customs authorities and personnel of the Federal Police,
they carried out the operation and moved the tractor box to the Tax Precinct review area, where they counted a total of 330 packages with said drug.
The authorities involved so far have not disclosed if the driver was arrested during the seizure,
in the same way the total weight of the drugs was not disclosed, which was made available to the Federal Public Ministry, of the FGR.
END
MORE:
Abandoned 50 kilos of marijuana in Colonia Las Bellotas
Details Published on Friday March 15, 2019,
Written by Writing / The Journal
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=126276
Nogales, Son
Elements of the Ministerial Agency of Criminal Investigation (AMIC) and of the Secretariat of the National Defense (Sedena),
made the seizure of 50 kilos of marijuana in an address in black work located in the colony The Bells in Nogales.
According to information from the Attorney General's Office of the State, personnel of the Ministerial Agency of Criminal Investigation,
carried out a investigation, related to the robbery of a house in that sector,
when they observed two men leaving with bundles and running.
They immediately asked for help from more agents of the local Operative Base and the Army,
who arrived at the site in search of individuals in the area.
It was not possible to locate them, as they were lost among a complex of houses
but they located five packages made with cinnamon colored tape and that gave off a narcotic aroma.
It was found that they had a green and dry grass with the characteristics of marijuana, which gave an approximate weight of 50 kilos.
The drugs was put at the disposal of the corresponding authority, while the investigative procedures are still in place to find the alleged victims.
END
PD: 15,000 fentanyl pills seized in west Phoenix motel
Posted: 1:45 PM, Mar 15, 2019 Updated: 1:51 PM, Mar 15, 2019
By: Joe Enea
https://www.abc15.com/news/crime/pd-15-000-fentanyl-pills-seized-in-west-phoenix-motel
Emmanuel Romero Hernandez.jpg
PHOENIX — Police seized 15,000 fentanyl pills and more than $9,000 in cash in a bust at a west Phoenix motel.
Narcotics detectives were called to the Motel 6 near 59th Avenue and McDowell Road on Tuesday,
after Phoenix police apprehended a woman inside one of the rooms and noticed paraphernalia.
In the motel room, officers reportedly saw drug ledgers and rubber bands.
After detaining 38-year-old Emmanuel Romero Hernandez, police searched the room and allegedly found 15,000 fentanyl pills,
two handguns, scales, numerous cell phones, and more than $9,000 in cash.
Hernandez allegedly told police that he was given $5,000 to hold onto the drugs by two men he met the day before.
Hernandez has been charged with narcotic drug possession, money laundering, and weapons misconduct.
END
They seize 300 packages of marijuana in Fiscal Precinct
Details Published on Thursday March 14, 2019,
Written by César Barragán / El Diario
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=126247
Nogales, Son
Personnel from 45 / a. Zona Militar based in Nogales, Sonora, secured more than 300 pressed packages containing marijuana
that were hidden in the box of a trailer that tried to cross into the United States through the Nogales POE.
The facts were recorded before noon yesterday when military personnel detected anomalies in one of the cargo boxes of a trailer
trying to cross into the neighboring country, which according to official documentation transported transformers.
For this reason, the military forces carried out the inspection of the cargo locating inside the truck dozens of pressed packages,
made with gray tape containing the drug.
For this reason, with the support of the customs authorities and personnel of the Federal Police,
they carried out the operation and moved the tractor box to the Tax Precinct review area, where they counted a total of 330 packages with said drug.
The authorities involved so far have not disclosed if the driver was arrested during the seizure,
in the same way the total weight of the drugs was not disclosed, which was made available to the Federal Public Ministry, of the FGR.
END
MORE:
Abandoned 50 kilos of marijuana in Colonia Las Bellotas
Details Published on Friday March 15, 2019,
Written by Writing / The Journal
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=126276
Nogales, Son
Elements of the Ministerial Agency of Criminal Investigation (AMIC) and of the Secretariat of the National Defense (Sedena),
made the seizure of 50 kilos of marijuana in an address in black work located in the colony The Bells in Nogales.
According to information from the Attorney General's Office of the State, personnel of the Ministerial Agency of Criminal Investigation,
carried out a investigation, related to the robbery of a house in that sector,
when they observed two men leaving with bundles and running.
They immediately asked for help from more agents of the local Operative Base and the Army,
who arrived at the site in search of individuals in the area.
It was not possible to locate them, as they were lost among a complex of houses
but they located five packages made with cinnamon colored tape and that gave off a narcotic aroma.
It was found that they had a green and dry grass with the characteristics of marijuana, which gave an approximate weight of 50 kilos.
The drugs was put at the disposal of the corresponding authority, while the investigative procedures are still in place to find the alleged victims.
END
Thursday, March 14, 2019
AZMEX EXTRA 14-3-19
AZMEX EXTRA 14 MAR 2019
Sedena (Army) destroys more than 100 firearms in Nogales
Details Published on Wednesday, March 13, 2019,
Written by César Barragán / El Diario
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=126182
Nogales, Son
More than 100 firearms and 18,000 cartridges of different calibers were destroyed by personnel of the
National Defense Secretariat, during a ceremony held at the facilities of the 45 Military Zone in Nogales.
The event was led by the General and commander of the 45th Military Zone, Salvador Fernando Cervantes Loza,
who was attended by authorities from the three levels of government
and special guests, including students from two schools in the town.
After the presentation of the authorities, a spokesperson for the Sedena, said that the 2018-2024 Peace and Security Plan
contemplates the implementation of public policies aimed at preventing and reducing risk factors to keep the population away
of the possible commission of faults or crimes.
In this context, the armed forces joined the three levels of government to contribute in a subsidiary manner
in this priority task throughout the national territory,
In Sonora, the presence of the commanders and troops of the 4th and 45th Military Zone, based in Hermosillo and Nogales,
facilitate close coordination with federal, state and municipal authorities in the fight against organized crime.
What allowed the destruction of 53 long weapons and 56 small arms of different models and calibers,
as well as 11 magazines and 18 thousand 836 cartridges of different calibers.
He mentioned that the destroyed weapons are products and samples of forceful legal actions against the delinquents
and after judicialization of each case, they were put at the disposition of the Secretary of the National Defense
so that in accordance with the provisions of the federal firearms law and explosives are destroyed
because they do not represent any use for the Secretary of State.
Subsequently, the representatives and holders of the state and municipal federal police and prosecutor's offices,
as well as the minor students, participated in the direct destruction of the aforementioned weapons.
Actions like these offer real possibilities to reduce violence in the state and contribute to recover the tranquility of citizenship
and without a doubt reaffirms the joint effort of government society and armed forces in the conclusion of peace.
On the other hand, the Secretary of Public Security of the State David Anaya Cooley,
mentioned that these assurances are part of the joint work with the authorities of the three levels of government,
which gives the certainty that work is being done in favor of security. of citizenship.
Weapons destruction:
53 long weapons
56 handguns
111 loaders
18836 cartridges of different calibers
Photo gallery
END
Sedena (Army) destroys more than 100 firearms in Nogales
Details Published on Wednesday, March 13, 2019,
Written by César Barragán / El Diario
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=126182
Nogales, Son
More than 100 firearms and 18,000 cartridges of different calibers were destroyed by personnel of the
National Defense Secretariat, during a ceremony held at the facilities of the 45 Military Zone in Nogales.
The event was led by the General and commander of the 45th Military Zone, Salvador Fernando Cervantes Loza,
who was attended by authorities from the three levels of government
and special guests, including students from two schools in the town.
After the presentation of the authorities, a spokesperson for the Sedena, said that the 2018-2024 Peace and Security Plan
contemplates the implementation of public policies aimed at preventing and reducing risk factors to keep the population away
of the possible commission of faults or crimes.
In this context, the armed forces joined the three levels of government to contribute in a subsidiary manner
in this priority task throughout the national territory,
In Sonora, the presence of the commanders and troops of the 4th and 45th Military Zone, based in Hermosillo and Nogales,
facilitate close coordination with federal, state and municipal authorities in the fight against organized crime.
What allowed the destruction of 53 long weapons and 56 small arms of different models and calibers,
as well as 11 magazines and 18 thousand 836 cartridges of different calibers.
He mentioned that the destroyed weapons are products and samples of forceful legal actions against the delinquents
and after judicialization of each case, they were put at the disposition of the Secretary of the National Defense
so that in accordance with the provisions of the federal firearms law and explosives are destroyed
because they do not represent any use for the Secretary of State.
Subsequently, the representatives and holders of the state and municipal federal police and prosecutor's offices,
as well as the minor students, participated in the direct destruction of the aforementioned weapons.
Actions like these offer real possibilities to reduce violence in the state and contribute to recover the tranquility of citizenship
and without a doubt reaffirms the joint effort of government society and armed forces in the conclusion of peace.
On the other hand, the Secretary of Public Security of the State David Anaya Cooley,
mentioned that these assurances are part of the joint work with the authorities of the three levels of government,
which gives the certainty that work is being done in favor of security. of citizenship.
Weapons destruction:
53 long weapons
56 handguns
111 loaders
18836 cartridges of different calibers
Photo gallery
END
AZMEX POLICY 14-3-19
AZMEX POLICY 14 MAR 2019
Mexico launches plan to consult Mexicans living in US
Associated Press
https://www.foxnews.com/world/mexico-launches-plan-to-consult-mexicans-living-in-us
Roberto Valdovinos, head of the Institute for Mexicans Abroad, is shown speaking in a video behind as he gives a news conference, sitting center, in Mexico City, Thursday, March 14, 2019. The Mexican government is launching open-ended public consultation forums in the U.S. to give Mexicans living there a chance to opine on Mexico's national development plan. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)
MEXICO CITY – The Mexican government is launching a plan to give Mexicans living in the United States a voice on national policy.
The Institute for Mexicans Abroad is planning to hold open-ended public consultation sessions from mid-March to mid-April in 13 U.S. cities. The forums will start on Sunday in San Francisco and end in Chicago on April 12 and New York on April 13.
The head of the Institute said Thursday that Mexicans can participate whether they are long-time established migrants or recent arrivals without proper documents.
"These are 12 million countrymen whose voices have never been heard before at this level," said the head of the institute, Roberto Valdovinos.
The consultative forums will be held in San Diego, Sacramento, Fresno and Los Angeles, and also in the Texas cities of Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and El Paso. Phoenix and Tucson will also have dates.
The forums won't be yes-or-no votes, but rather a chance for Mexicans abroad to contribute ideas on Mexico's national development plan.
Valdovinos said the administration of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is hoping to put together a comprehensive plan for Mexicans returning or deported from the United States, including points like making it easier for them to get their U.S. educational records transferred to Mexico.
While such plans have been attempted in the past, they frequently never made it out to their outlying towns many migrants come from. "These (programs) are often mandated on a national level, but out in the townships they aren't enforced, because of inertia," Valdovinos said.
Lopez Obrador has said that his hope is to create enough jobs in Mexico so that Mexicans no longer have to migrate, and that eventually the United States will be asking for Mexicans to come.
END
Mexico launches plan to consult Mexicans living in US
Associated Press
https://www.foxnews.com/world/mexico-launches-plan-to-consult-mexicans-living-in-us
Roberto Valdovinos, head of the Institute for Mexicans Abroad, is shown speaking in a video behind as he gives a news conference, sitting center, in Mexico City, Thursday, March 14, 2019. The Mexican government is launching open-ended public consultation forums in the U.S. to give Mexicans living there a chance to opine on Mexico's national development plan. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)
MEXICO CITY – The Mexican government is launching a plan to give Mexicans living in the United States a voice on national policy.
The Institute for Mexicans Abroad is planning to hold open-ended public consultation sessions from mid-March to mid-April in 13 U.S. cities. The forums will start on Sunday in San Francisco and end in Chicago on April 12 and New York on April 13.
The head of the Institute said Thursday that Mexicans can participate whether they are long-time established migrants or recent arrivals without proper documents.
"These are 12 million countrymen whose voices have never been heard before at this level," said the head of the institute, Roberto Valdovinos.
The consultative forums will be held in San Diego, Sacramento, Fresno and Los Angeles, and also in the Texas cities of Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and El Paso. Phoenix and Tucson will also have dates.
The forums won't be yes-or-no votes, but rather a chance for Mexicans abroad to contribute ideas on Mexico's national development plan.
Valdovinos said the administration of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is hoping to put together a comprehensive plan for Mexicans returning or deported from the United States, including points like making it easier for them to get their U.S. educational records transferred to Mexico.
While such plans have been attempted in the past, they frequently never made it out to their outlying towns many migrants come from. "These (programs) are often mandated on a national level, but out in the townships they aren't enforced, because of inertia," Valdovinos said.
Lopez Obrador has said that his hope is to create enough jobs in Mexico so that Mexicans no longer have to migrate, and that eventually the United States will be asking for Mexicans to come.
END
Tuesday, March 12, 2019
AZMEX UPDATE 12-3-19
AZMEX UPDATE 12 MAR 2019
Military seizes more than 100 kilos of crystal in Nogales
Details Published on Monday March 11, 2019,
Written by César Barragán / El Diario
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=126078
Nogales, Son
Cash from the Mexican Army carried out the seizure of more than 100 kilos ( 220 lbs ) of the drug known as "crystal",
which was abandoned by individuals who managed to flee in events that occurred in the Nogales colonia Fundo Legal de Nogales.
According to the reports issued by personnel from the 45th Military Zone,
this confiscation was carried out on the night of March 10 on Calle Pierson,
when the military carried out a surveillance tour of that sector.
It was in that place that they noticed the presence of two civilians in a suspicious attitude,
who when observing the patrols of the military forces fled and left behind three suitcases and a large plastic container.
When reviewing the suitcases and the container they observed that in their interior they were diverse containers (topper)
and wrappers of plastic that contained a granulated substance with the characteristics of the drug in mention.
For this reason, said authority carried out the seizure of the narcotics which yielded a weight of 110 kilograms,
which was made available to the Agent of the Federal Public Ministry of the municipality of Nogales, Son.,
In coordination with agents of the Federal Police (Gendarmerie Division) ), who served as first respondents.
END
More:
FGR gets indictment after securing four thousand fentanyl pills
Statement FGR 99/19.
http://www.elregionaldesonora.com.mx/noticia/78792
The agent of the Public Prosecutor's Office of the Attorney General's Office (FGR) in Sonora obtained an indictment
and informal preventive detention against a man, for his probable responsibility in the commission of the crime against health,
in the form of fentanyl transport.
According to the investigation folder, elements of the State Public Security Police, in the Strategic Security Military Post "Querobabi", s
ecured two packages made with cinnamon and transparent plastic tape,
which contained four thousand 398 Fentanyl pills,
at the time that They arrested a man.
After the above, the federal social representative made the corresponding accusation
before the District Judge Specialized in the Accusatory Criminal System,
who issued an interlocutory order to process and set the precautionary measure of informal preventive detention against the accused today,
who was interned in the CEFERESO number 11, in Hermosillo, Sonora.
End
Military seizes more than 100 kilos of crystal in Nogales
Details Published on Monday March 11, 2019,
Written by César Barragán / El Diario
http://www.eldiariodesonora.com.mx/notas.php?nota=126078
Nogales, Son
Cash from the Mexican Army carried out the seizure of more than 100 kilos ( 220 lbs ) of the drug known as "crystal",
which was abandoned by individuals who managed to flee in events that occurred in the Nogales colonia Fundo Legal de Nogales.
According to the reports issued by personnel from the 45th Military Zone,
this confiscation was carried out on the night of March 10 on Calle Pierson,
when the military carried out a surveillance tour of that sector.
It was in that place that they noticed the presence of two civilians in a suspicious attitude,
who when observing the patrols of the military forces fled and left behind three suitcases and a large plastic container.
When reviewing the suitcases and the container they observed that in their interior they were diverse containers (topper)
and wrappers of plastic that contained a granulated substance with the characteristics of the drug in mention.
For this reason, said authority carried out the seizure of the narcotics which yielded a weight of 110 kilograms,
which was made available to the Agent of the Federal Public Ministry of the municipality of Nogales, Son.,
In coordination with agents of the Federal Police (Gendarmerie Division) ), who served as first respondents.
END
More:
FGR gets indictment after securing four thousand fentanyl pills
Statement FGR 99/19.
http://www.elregionaldesonora.com.mx/noticia/78792
The agent of the Public Prosecutor's Office of the Attorney General's Office (FGR) in Sonora obtained an indictment
and informal preventive detention against a man, for his probable responsibility in the commission of the crime against health,
in the form of fentanyl transport.
According to the investigation folder, elements of the State Public Security Police, in the Strategic Security Military Post "Querobabi", s
ecured two packages made with cinnamon and transparent plastic tape,
which contained four thousand 398 Fentanyl pills,
at the time that They arrested a man.
After the above, the federal social representative made the corresponding accusation
before the District Judge Specialized in the Accusatory Criminal System,
who issued an interlocutory order to process and set the precautionary measure of informal preventive detention against the accused today,
who was interned in the CEFERESO number 11, in Hermosillo, Sonora.
End
AZMEX I3 12-3-19
AZMEX I3 12 MAR 2019
More than 2,000 people in ICE custody quarantined for contagious diseases
By Geneva Sands, Michelle Lou and Susan Scutti, CNN
Posted 17 hrs ago
https://www.azfamily.com/news/us_world_news/more-than-people-in-ice-custody-quarantined-for-contagious-diseases/article_f3c334a1-5514-56c5-b0e8-30990b09e06b.html
Vaccination
Just a week after a congressional hearing on the significant rise of measles cases in the United States, lawmakers are meeting again to discuss outbreaks of preventable diseases that seems to be sweeping the nation.
Mario Tama/Getty Images File
(CNN) -- More than 2,000 people in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody are being quarantined amid an outbreak of mumps and other diseases.
The numbers of immigrants in custody with a contagious diseases has spiked in the past year. For the previous two years, the agency has not encountered a single case of mumps among its detainees.
"As of March 7, 2019, there was a total of 2,287 detainees cohorted for exposure to a detainee with a contagious condition," said ICE spokesperson Brendan Raedy in a statement.
In the past 12 months, there have been health investigations at 51 ICE detention facilities for mumps, chickenpox and influenza, according to Raedy.
There have been 236 reported cases of mumps, with another 16 suspected cases during this time period.
Mumps is a contagious virus that is typically spread through saliva and mucus. Symptoms include fever, muscle aches, loss of appetite and puffiness around the cheeks and jaw from swollen salivary glands.
Last year, there were 423 people documented with influenza and 461 people with chickenpox in ICE custody, according to the agency.
But from January 2016 to February 2018, there were zero notifications of mumps, and only 73 of chickenpox and 34 of influenza.
"ICE takes very seriously the health, safety and welfare of those in our care. ICE is committed to ensuring the welfare of all those in the agency's custody, including providing access to necessary and appropriate medical care," Raedy said in a statement.
Last week, Texas officials announced that nearly 200 people at immigration detention facilities across the state had contracted mumps since October.
The 186 patients ranged from 13 to 66 years old, the Texas Department of State Health Services said Tuesday.
"They should be in isolation," said Dr. David Persse, of Houston's public health authority last week.
Persse urged ICE start isolating people who show mumps symptoms and quarantine people who may have been infected.
"To some degree, this is foreseeable, because you're bringing a lot of people and housing them in tight spaces for long periods," Persse said.
US officials have been warning of the perils of diseases for migrants arriving in the US, increasingly in large numbers of families and children.
"Migrants travel north from countries where poverty and disease are rampant, and their health can be aggravated by the physical toll of the journey. Many individuals we encounter may have never seen a doctor, received immunizations, or lived in sanitary conditions. Close quarters on trains and buses can hasten the spread of communicable diseases," said US Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan during congressional testimony last week.
In December, CBP mandated secondary medical reviews of all in children, after two young Guatemalan children died after being in Border Protection custody.
CBP also requested additional medical support from the US Coast Guard and the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, as well as coordinating with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to gather data on infectious diseases among migrants in custody.
Migrants who cross the border illegally are generally transferred from Border Protection custody to ICE custody for further processing or release.
ICE said that comprehensive medical care is provided to everyone in custody, including access to nurses, physicians, and to 24-hour emergency care.
It was unclear Monday, if ICE was taking additional steps to deal with issues of disease in its facilities.
Reuters first reported on the quarantine.
END
More than 2,000 people in ICE custody quarantined for contagious diseases
By Geneva Sands, Michelle Lou and Susan Scutti, CNN
Posted 17 hrs ago
https://www.azfamily.com/news/us_world_news/more-than-people-in-ice-custody-quarantined-for-contagious-diseases/article_f3c334a1-5514-56c5-b0e8-30990b09e06b.html
Vaccination
Just a week after a congressional hearing on the significant rise of measles cases in the United States, lawmakers are meeting again to discuss outbreaks of preventable diseases that seems to be sweeping the nation.
Mario Tama/Getty Images File
(CNN) -- More than 2,000 people in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody are being quarantined amid an outbreak of mumps and other diseases.
The numbers of immigrants in custody with a contagious diseases has spiked in the past year. For the previous two years, the agency has not encountered a single case of mumps among its detainees.
"As of March 7, 2019, there was a total of 2,287 detainees cohorted for exposure to a detainee with a contagious condition," said ICE spokesperson Brendan Raedy in a statement.
In the past 12 months, there have been health investigations at 51 ICE detention facilities for mumps, chickenpox and influenza, according to Raedy.
There have been 236 reported cases of mumps, with another 16 suspected cases during this time period.
Mumps is a contagious virus that is typically spread through saliva and mucus. Symptoms include fever, muscle aches, loss of appetite and puffiness around the cheeks and jaw from swollen salivary glands.
Last year, there were 423 people documented with influenza and 461 people with chickenpox in ICE custody, according to the agency.
But from January 2016 to February 2018, there were zero notifications of mumps, and only 73 of chickenpox and 34 of influenza.
"ICE takes very seriously the health, safety and welfare of those in our care. ICE is committed to ensuring the welfare of all those in the agency's custody, including providing access to necessary and appropriate medical care," Raedy said in a statement.
Last week, Texas officials announced that nearly 200 people at immigration detention facilities across the state had contracted mumps since October.
The 186 patients ranged from 13 to 66 years old, the Texas Department of State Health Services said Tuesday.
"They should be in isolation," said Dr. David Persse, of Houston's public health authority last week.
Persse urged ICE start isolating people who show mumps symptoms and quarantine people who may have been infected.
"To some degree, this is foreseeable, because you're bringing a lot of people and housing them in tight spaces for long periods," Persse said.
US officials have been warning of the perils of diseases for migrants arriving in the US, increasingly in large numbers of families and children.
"Migrants travel north from countries where poverty and disease are rampant, and their health can be aggravated by the physical toll of the journey. Many individuals we encounter may have never seen a doctor, received immunizations, or lived in sanitary conditions. Close quarters on trains and buses can hasten the spread of communicable diseases," said US Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan during congressional testimony last week.
In December, CBP mandated secondary medical reviews of all in children, after two young Guatemalan children died after being in Border Protection custody.
CBP also requested additional medical support from the US Coast Guard and the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, as well as coordinating with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to gather data on infectious diseases among migrants in custody.
Migrants who cross the border illegally are generally transferred from Border Protection custody to ICE custody for further processing or release.
ICE said that comprehensive medical care is provided to everyone in custody, including access to nurses, physicians, and to 24-hour emergency care.
It was unclear Monday, if ICE was taking additional steps to deal with issues of disease in its facilities.
Reuters first reported on the quarantine.
END
AZMEX I3 11-3-19
AZMEX I3 11 MAR 2019
Agents arrest almost 750 illegal immigrants in Yuma
Posted: Mar 11, 2019 03:24 PM MST
Updated: Mar 11, 2019 03:24 PM MST
https://www.kyma.com/news/agents-arrest-almost-750-illegal-immigrants-in-yuma/1056799588
U.S. CBP
YUMA, Ariz. - Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents apprehended large groups of mostly Central American families this weekend, many of whom required medical attention, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Agents said they arrested almost 750 illegal immigrants , most of whom were family groups from Central America who walked through the Colorado River vehicle barriers near Yuma and surrendered to agents.
Approximately 87 percent were Guatemalan with the remaining being from Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, and Ecuador.
To date in Fiscal Year 2019, Yuma Sector has seen a 230 percent increase in family unit apprehensions
and a 36 percent increase in unaccompanied children apprehensions when compared to year to date numbers last year.
Yuma Sector agents provided medical treatment to 137 illegal immigrants,
either through medically certified agents, contract medical personnel at the stations
or by transporting the subjects to local hospitals.
Some of the medical ailments included: pregnancy complications,
lacerations, blisters, respiratory issues, chicken pox, lice and scabies.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials welcome assistance from the community.
Individuals can report suspicious activity to the Border Patrol and remain anonymous
by calling 1-877-872-7435 toll free.
Reporting illicit activity could result in saving someone's life.
END
Agents arrest almost 750 illegal immigrants in Yuma
Posted: Mar 11, 2019 03:24 PM MST
Updated: Mar 11, 2019 03:24 PM MST
https://www.kyma.com/news/agents-arrest-almost-750-illegal-immigrants-in-yuma/1056799588
U.S. CBP
YUMA, Ariz. - Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents apprehended large groups of mostly Central American families this weekend, many of whom required medical attention, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Agents said they arrested almost 750 illegal immigrants , most of whom were family groups from Central America who walked through the Colorado River vehicle barriers near Yuma and surrendered to agents.
Approximately 87 percent were Guatemalan with the remaining being from Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, and Ecuador.
To date in Fiscal Year 2019, Yuma Sector has seen a 230 percent increase in family unit apprehensions
and a 36 percent increase in unaccompanied children apprehensions when compared to year to date numbers last year.
Yuma Sector agents provided medical treatment to 137 illegal immigrants,
either through medically certified agents, contract medical personnel at the stations
or by transporting the subjects to local hospitals.
Some of the medical ailments included: pregnancy complications,
lacerations, blisters, respiratory issues, chicken pox, lice and scabies.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials welcome assistance from the community.
Individuals can report suspicious activity to the Border Patrol and remain anonymous
by calling 1-877-872-7435 toll free.
Reporting illicit activity could result in saving someone's life.
END
Monday, March 11, 2019
AZMEX EXTRA 10-3-19
AZMEX EXTRA 10 MAR 2019
Note: photos, video, etc. at link.
After chase and confrontation, AMIC agents seize armored vehicle, weapons and cartridges
By: Drafting / GH | 03/10/2019 12:15
https://www.elimparcial.com/Policiaca/2019/03/10/1414826-Tras-persecucion-y-enfrentamiento-agentes-de-la-AMIC-aseguran-vehiculo-blindado-armas-y-cartuchos-utiles. html
CABORCA, Sonora (GH)
Elements of the Ministerial Agency for Criminal Investigation (AMIC), with the support of corporations of the three levels, secured an armored vehicle, weapons and magazines.
Staff of the Operative Base loca, of the Attorney General's Office of the State (FGJE), staged a chase and confrontation with the occupants of the car.
The car was secured, inside which they located three tactical vests, one with ballistic protection, five AK-47 rifle magazines supplied with 7.62 x 39 millimeter cartridges.
In addition, an AK-47 rifle with wooden stock and forearm made in Poland, various items such as ropes, toiletries, among other things.
They provided support to the Municipal Public Safety Operative Group of Caborca, the State Public Security Police (PESP), the Federal Police and personnel of the 22nd Army Motorized Cavalry Regiment.
Around 11:40 hours on Saturday, March 9, two official units with AMIC agents encountered a silver Jeep Grand Cherokee, model 2000, which was going at high speed.
It was on the Caborca-Pitiquito International Highway, at a hotel, when the stop was marked with audible signals and turrets, but they fled.
Upon reaching Calle 33 and Santa Ramona, in the Colonia Santa Cecilia neighborhood, the investigators were attacked by the occupants with firearms.
They repelled the attack with the official armament, noticing the agents of the FGJE that the vehicle counted on armor who again fled by the avenida Aviación..
Agents of the AMIC activated the Red Code of the C5i (Control Center, Command, Communication, Computing, Coordination and Intelligence, of the Public Security Secretariat of the State of Sonora.
Municipal, state, and federal police and members of the Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena) joined in the persecution, until the Jeep Grand Cherokee was located.
Near the ejido Solomon Quihuis, better known as Las Cocheras, 50 kilometers south of the road, the vehicle was abandoned, with the doors open and the engine running.
Among the participating elements, the search was set up between the mountains, but its traffickers could not be located, so the operation is maintained.
The automotive unit presented several impacts on its body with armor, the left front rim shredded and without a tire, in its interior, the rifle, magazines, cartridges, and other objects.
The corresponding procedures were made, ensuring the matter to be made available to the corresponding authority.
END
Note: photos, video, etc. at link.
After chase and confrontation, AMIC agents seize armored vehicle, weapons and cartridges
By: Drafting / GH | 03/10/2019 12:15
https://www.elimparcial.com/Policiaca/2019/03/10/1414826-Tras-persecucion-y-enfrentamiento-agentes-de-la-AMIC-aseguran-vehiculo-blindado-armas-y-cartuchos-utiles. html
CABORCA, Sonora (GH)
Elements of the Ministerial Agency for Criminal Investigation (AMIC), with the support of corporations of the three levels, secured an armored vehicle, weapons and magazines.
Staff of the Operative Base loca, of the Attorney General's Office of the State (FGJE), staged a chase and confrontation with the occupants of the car.
The car was secured, inside which they located three tactical vests, one with ballistic protection, five AK-47 rifle magazines supplied with 7.62 x 39 millimeter cartridges.
In addition, an AK-47 rifle with wooden stock and forearm made in Poland, various items such as ropes, toiletries, among other things.
They provided support to the Municipal Public Safety Operative Group of Caborca, the State Public Security Police (PESP), the Federal Police and personnel of the 22nd Army Motorized Cavalry Regiment.
Around 11:40 hours on Saturday, March 9, two official units with AMIC agents encountered a silver Jeep Grand Cherokee, model 2000, which was going at high speed.
It was on the Caborca-Pitiquito International Highway, at a hotel, when the stop was marked with audible signals and turrets, but they fled.
Upon reaching Calle 33 and Santa Ramona, in the Colonia Santa Cecilia neighborhood, the investigators were attacked by the occupants with firearms.
They repelled the attack with the official armament, noticing the agents of the FGJE that the vehicle counted on armor who again fled by the avenida Aviación..
Agents of the AMIC activated the Red Code of the C5i (Control Center, Command, Communication, Computing, Coordination and Intelligence, of the Public Security Secretariat of the State of Sonora.
Municipal, state, and federal police and members of the Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena) joined in the persecution, until the Jeep Grand Cherokee was located.
Near the ejido Solomon Quihuis, better known as Las Cocheras, 50 kilometers south of the road, the vehicle was abandoned, with the doors open and the engine running.
Among the participating elements, the search was set up between the mountains, but its traffickers could not be located, so the operation is maintained.
The automotive unit presented several impacts on its body with armor, the left front rim shredded and without a tire, in its interior, the rifle, magazines, cartridges, and other objects.
The corresponding procedures were made, ensuring the matter to be made available to the corresponding authority.
END
Friday, March 8, 2019
AZMEX I3 8-3-19
Officials send asylum seekers from Texas to Arizona
Posted: 7:39 PM, Mar 07, 2019 Updated: 7:39 PM, Mar 07, 2019
By: Associated Press
Photo by: David J. Phillip
https://www.kgun9.com/news/local-news/officials-send-asylum-seekers-from-texas-to-arizona
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - A drastic increase in the number of families seeking asylum along the Texas-Mexico border
has caused immigration agents to transport many of the people to Arizona, a newspaper says.
The Arizona Republic reports that U.S. immigration officials are taking families who were detained in El Paso, Texas,
and transporting them 300 miles (483 kilometers) to Tucson, Arizona.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents transported 398 asylum seekers from El Paso to Tucson between Feb. 16 and Feb. 18. T
ucson-area Border Patrol stations accepting the families are located in Willcox, Naco and Douglas.
All the families transported in February were expected to be released into the custody of relatives in the U.S.
and were transported to the stations before heading to relatives' locations, the newspaper said.
More than 76,000 migrants crossed the U.S.-Mexico border last month, more than double the number from the same period last year.
In the past few months, 70 groups of more than 100 people crossed illegally.
Government figures show the number of immigrants apprehended while traveling as families in the El Paso region
has gone up nearly 1,700 percent in the first five months of the current fiscal year over the same period last year.
El Paso is now the second-busiest crossing point along the southwestern U.S. border behind the Rio Grande Valley.
The city's shelters have been unable to house all the newly released families
and many found themselves on the streets in search of transportation.
Tucson shelters are taking on much of the burden.
In the past month, one shelter has taken in more than 1,100 mostly Central American families released from detention.
A charity director said she would not be surprised if more families were released into the care of shelters.
END
Posted: 7:39 PM, Mar 07, 2019 Updated: 7:39 PM, Mar 07, 2019
By: Associated Press
Photo by: David J. Phillip
https://www.kgun9.com/news/local-news/officials-send-asylum-seekers-from-texas-to-arizona
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - A drastic increase in the number of families seeking asylum along the Texas-Mexico border
has caused immigration agents to transport many of the people to Arizona, a newspaper says.
The Arizona Republic reports that U.S. immigration officials are taking families who were detained in El Paso, Texas,
and transporting them 300 miles (483 kilometers) to Tucson, Arizona.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents transported 398 asylum seekers from El Paso to Tucson between Feb. 16 and Feb. 18. T
ucson-area Border Patrol stations accepting the families are located in Willcox, Naco and Douglas.
All the families transported in February were expected to be released into the custody of relatives in the U.S.
and were transported to the stations before heading to relatives' locations, the newspaper said.
More than 76,000 migrants crossed the U.S.-Mexico border last month, more than double the number from the same period last year.
In the past few months, 70 groups of more than 100 people crossed illegally.
Government figures show the number of immigrants apprehended while traveling as families in the El Paso region
has gone up nearly 1,700 percent in the first five months of the current fiscal year over the same period last year.
El Paso is now the second-busiest crossing point along the southwestern U.S. border behind the Rio Grande Valley.
The city's shelters have been unable to house all the newly released families
and many found themselves on the streets in search of transportation.
Tucson shelters are taking on much of the burden.
In the past month, one shelter has taken in more than 1,100 mostly Central American families released from detention.
A charity director said she would not be surprised if more families were released into the care of shelters.
END
AZMEX SPECIAL 8-3-19
AZMEX SPECIAL 8 MAR 2019
Note: photos, video, etc. at link.
Comment: Darwin at work?
Thx
FENTALNYL'S FATAL FALLOUT
Counterfeit Percocet pills widely available in Nogales, Mexico
Morgan Loew
Posted 13 hrs ago
https://www.azfamily.com/news/investigations/opioid_crisis/fentanyl/counterfeit-percocet-pills-widely-available-in-nogales-mexico/article_106dfe54-406d-11e9-a675-df4431cc8256.html
It is a drug epidemic that is killing teenagers across Arizona. Tonight, we are turning the tables on the dealers who are selling pills laced with deadly fentanyl.
Chief investigative reporter Morgan Loew traveled to Mexico for this hidden camera investigation.
NOGALES (CBS 5) -- It took less than 30 seconds to find a man in Nogales, Sonora in Mexico
willing to sell the type of deadly counterfeit Percocet pills that are causing a spike in overdoses among teenagers in particular here in the Valley.
CBS 5 Investigates sent a team to the border to find out how readily available the pills are on the street.
Law enforcement says the pills confiscated here in the Valley during recent busts and overdoses came from Mexico.
[RELATED: What is fentanyl and why is it 'the deadliest drug in the world'?]
"How can we help you?" said the man, as chief investigative reporter Morgan Loew walked out into the street.
"I'm looking for M30s," said Loew, referring to the street name for the pills.
"I'm going to introduce you to my guy," said the man.
Less than 30 seconds later, hidden camera video shows they were at a storefront, negotiating the cost of the pills.
Loew walked away from the deal without making the purchase.
"Fentanyl is the drug du jour," said Dr. Frank LoVecchio from Banner Poison and Drug Information Center.
LoVecchio says he's seen a dramatic increase in overdoses due to fentanyl in the past three years.
"Now we see it every single day," said LoVecchio.
"People like to pass it off as Percocet," said Parker McKinsey, a recovering addict himself,
who lost his younger brother to a fentanyl overdose last year.
"You're not going to find it without fentanyl in it if you're buying it from somebody on the street," said McKinsey.
[TIMELINE: Emergence of the opioid crisis]
Last month, a student at Notre Dame Preparatory in Scottsdale was arrested after he allegedly supplied pills laced with fentanyl to other students.
Teenagers in San Luis, Tucson, Phoenix and Prescott Valley have died from fentanyl overdoses in the past year.
Health experts say there are likely more, but it is difficult to keep track of the number because official statistics are a year behind.
[RELATED: Americans more likely to die by opioid overdose than in a car crash]
Quick use of the anti-overdose medication, NARCAN, has saved dozens of lives.
"Some patients have been able to describe it was an M30 pill that they bought," said Kim Schmid,
who works at Banner Poison and Drug Information Center.
According to federal and local law enforcement officials, the raw fentanyl is made in China and shipped to Mexico.
They say the Sinaloa Drug Cartel turns the pure form of the drug into pills, that are stamped to resemble Percocet,
with an "M" on one side and a "30" on the other.
[RELATED: The different types of opioids]
From Sinaloa, the drugs are shipped north to the border, where they are either sold on the street
or transported on people or in vehicles through the ports of entry into the United States.
From the border area, they are shipped to cities like Phoenix.
[SPECIAL SECTION: Fentanyl's Fatal Fallout]
CBS 5 Investigates confronted one of the drug sellers in Nogales.
When asked why he's selling a drug that is known to kill teenagers, the man shrugged his head and said he did not know.
End
Note: photos, video, etc. at link.
Comment: Darwin at work?
Thx
FENTALNYL'S FATAL FALLOUT
Counterfeit Percocet pills widely available in Nogales, Mexico
Morgan Loew
Posted 13 hrs ago
https://www.azfamily.com/news/investigations/opioid_crisis/fentanyl/counterfeit-percocet-pills-widely-available-in-nogales-mexico/article_106dfe54-406d-11e9-a675-df4431cc8256.html
It is a drug epidemic that is killing teenagers across Arizona. Tonight, we are turning the tables on the dealers who are selling pills laced with deadly fentanyl.
Chief investigative reporter Morgan Loew traveled to Mexico for this hidden camera investigation.
NOGALES (CBS 5) -- It took less than 30 seconds to find a man in Nogales, Sonora in Mexico
willing to sell the type of deadly counterfeit Percocet pills that are causing a spike in overdoses among teenagers in particular here in the Valley.
CBS 5 Investigates sent a team to the border to find out how readily available the pills are on the street.
Law enforcement says the pills confiscated here in the Valley during recent busts and overdoses came from Mexico.
[RELATED: What is fentanyl and why is it 'the deadliest drug in the world'?]
"How can we help you?" said the man, as chief investigative reporter Morgan Loew walked out into the street.
"I'm looking for M30s," said Loew, referring to the street name for the pills.
"I'm going to introduce you to my guy," said the man.
Less than 30 seconds later, hidden camera video shows they were at a storefront, negotiating the cost of the pills.
Loew walked away from the deal without making the purchase.
"Fentanyl is the drug du jour," said Dr. Frank LoVecchio from Banner Poison and Drug Information Center.
LoVecchio says he's seen a dramatic increase in overdoses due to fentanyl in the past three years.
"Now we see it every single day," said LoVecchio.
"People like to pass it off as Percocet," said Parker McKinsey, a recovering addict himself,
who lost his younger brother to a fentanyl overdose last year.
"You're not going to find it without fentanyl in it if you're buying it from somebody on the street," said McKinsey.
[TIMELINE: Emergence of the opioid crisis]
Last month, a student at Notre Dame Preparatory in Scottsdale was arrested after he allegedly supplied pills laced with fentanyl to other students.
Teenagers in San Luis, Tucson, Phoenix and Prescott Valley have died from fentanyl overdoses in the past year.
Health experts say there are likely more, but it is difficult to keep track of the number because official statistics are a year behind.
[RELATED: Americans more likely to die by opioid overdose than in a car crash]
Quick use of the anti-overdose medication, NARCAN, has saved dozens of lives.
"Some patients have been able to describe it was an M30 pill that they bought," said Kim Schmid,
who works at Banner Poison and Drug Information Center.
According to federal and local law enforcement officials, the raw fentanyl is made in China and shipped to Mexico.
They say the Sinaloa Drug Cartel turns the pure form of the drug into pills, that are stamped to resemble Percocet,
with an "M" on one side and a "30" on the other.
[RELATED: The different types of opioids]
From Sinaloa, the drugs are shipped north to the border, where they are either sold on the street
or transported on people or in vehicles through the ports of entry into the United States.
From the border area, they are shipped to cities like Phoenix.
[SPECIAL SECTION: Fentanyl's Fatal Fallout]
CBS 5 Investigates confronted one of the drug sellers in Nogales.
When asked why he's selling a drug that is known to kill teenagers, the man shrugged his head and said he did not know.
End
Wednesday, March 6, 2019
AZMEX UPDATE 6-3-19
AZMEX UPDATE 6 MAR 2019
Tucson Sector Welcomes New Chief Patrol Agent
Release Date: March 4, 2019
https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/tucson-sector-welcomes-new-chief-patrol-agent
TUCSON, Ariz. – U.S. Border Patrol leadership has selected Roy Villareal as the new Tucson Sector Chief Patrol Agent.
Photo Courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Photo Courtesy of U.S. Customs
and Border Protection
Today, Chief Villareal began leading more than 3,900 agents and mission support staff in one of the busiest Border Patrol sectors in the nation. Chief Villareal is responsible for securing 262 linear miles of Arizona's border with Mexico and all operational and administrative aspects of the Tucson Sector.
Throughout his more than 30-year accomplished career, Chief Villareal has co-authored the Border Patrol's Evidence Policy, served as the Border Safety Initiative coordinator in Washington D.C. and was instrumental in the establishment of Border Patrol's Search, Trauma, and Rescue Team BORSTAR, serving as its first commander.
Prior to his selection, Chief Villareal served multiple leadership positions to include Deputy Chief Patrol Agent of the San Diego and El Centro Sectors. He has also served as an Assistant Chief Patrol Agent and Acting Deputy Chief Patrol Agent for the Yuma Sector.
Chief Villareal earned a Master of Arts in International Relations from the University of San Diego, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from California State University (CSU), San Marcos and an Associate of Arts degree with a Pre-Law emphasis. In 2009 he graduated from the Command Leadership Academy. He is a graduate of the John F. Kennedy School of Government's Senior Executive Fellows Program at Harvard University.
"I look forward to working with the men and women of the Tucson Sector and I am confident we will continue to make strides in border security here in Arizona," said Chief Villareal. "We will face what challenges may come together with our federal, state, local and tribal partners, to build safer border communities and a more secure nation."
END
ALSO:
Cambia Patrulla Fronteriza de Jefe
manuel POSTED ON 06/03/2019
Omar Chiquete
Nuevo Día/Nogales, Arizona
http://nuevodia.com.mx/2019/03/06/cambia-patrulla-fronteriza-de-jefe/
Roy Villarreal fue designado como Jefe de la Patrulla Fronteriza, del Sector Tucson, durante ceremonia realizada en la Ciudad de Tucson, Arizona.
El nuevo jefe de la Patrulla Fronteriza es responsable de asegurar 262 millas lineales de la frontera de Arizona con México y los aspectos operativos y administrativos del Sector de Tucson.
A lo largo de más de 30 años de carrera, el Jefe Villareal es coautor de la Política de Evidencia de la Patrulla Fronteriza; se desempeñó como Coordinador de la Iniciativa de Seguridad Fronteriza, en Washington DC y fue fundamental en el establecimiento del Equipo de Búsqueda, Trauma y Rescate de la Patrulla Fronteriza, BORSTAR, sirviendo como Primer Comandante.
Antes de su selección, el Jefe Villareal se desempeñó en varios puestos de liderazgo entre ellos, Agente Adjunto de Patrulla de los Sectores de San Diego y El Centro.
También se ha desempeñado como agente asistente de jefe de patrulla y agente adjunto interino de patrulla para el Sector de Yuma.
El Jefe Villareal obtuvo una Maestría en Artes en Relaciones Internacionales por la Universidad de San Diego, una Licenciatura en Ciencias Políticas, por la Universidad del Estado de California (CSU), San Marcos y una Licenciatura en Artes, con énfasis en Pre-Ley.
En 2009 se graduó en la Academia de Liderazgo de Mando. Se graduó en el Programa de Estudiantes Ejecutivos Senior, de la Escuela de Gobierno John F. Kennedy, en la Universidad de Harvard.
"Espero trabajar con los hombres y mujeres del Sector de Tucson y confío en que continuaremos haciendo progresos en la seguridad fronteriza, aquí en Arizona", dijo el Jefe Villareal.
"Enfrentaremos los desafíos que puedan surgir con nuestros socios federales, estatales, locales y tribales, para construir comunidades fronterizas más seguras y una nación más segura".
END
Tucson Sector Welcomes New Chief Patrol Agent
Release Date: March 4, 2019
https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/tucson-sector-welcomes-new-chief-patrol-agent
TUCSON, Ariz. – U.S. Border Patrol leadership has selected Roy Villareal as the new Tucson Sector Chief Patrol Agent.
Photo Courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Photo Courtesy of U.S. Customs
and Border Protection
Today, Chief Villareal began leading more than 3,900 agents and mission support staff in one of the busiest Border Patrol sectors in the nation. Chief Villareal is responsible for securing 262 linear miles of Arizona's border with Mexico and all operational and administrative aspects of the Tucson Sector.
Throughout his more than 30-year accomplished career, Chief Villareal has co-authored the Border Patrol's Evidence Policy, served as the Border Safety Initiative coordinator in Washington D.C. and was instrumental in the establishment of Border Patrol's Search, Trauma, and Rescue Team BORSTAR, serving as its first commander.
Prior to his selection, Chief Villareal served multiple leadership positions to include Deputy Chief Patrol Agent of the San Diego and El Centro Sectors. He has also served as an Assistant Chief Patrol Agent and Acting Deputy Chief Patrol Agent for the Yuma Sector.
Chief Villareal earned a Master of Arts in International Relations from the University of San Diego, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from California State University (CSU), San Marcos and an Associate of Arts degree with a Pre-Law emphasis. In 2009 he graduated from the Command Leadership Academy. He is a graduate of the John F. Kennedy School of Government's Senior Executive Fellows Program at Harvard University.
"I look forward to working with the men and women of the Tucson Sector and I am confident we will continue to make strides in border security here in Arizona," said Chief Villareal. "We will face what challenges may come together with our federal, state, local and tribal partners, to build safer border communities and a more secure nation."
END
ALSO:
Cambia Patrulla Fronteriza de Jefe
manuel POSTED ON 06/03/2019
Omar Chiquete
Nuevo Día/Nogales, Arizona
http://nuevodia.com.mx/2019/03/06/cambia-patrulla-fronteriza-de-jefe/
Roy Villarreal fue designado como Jefe de la Patrulla Fronteriza, del Sector Tucson, durante ceremonia realizada en la Ciudad de Tucson, Arizona.
El nuevo jefe de la Patrulla Fronteriza es responsable de asegurar 262 millas lineales de la frontera de Arizona con México y los aspectos operativos y administrativos del Sector de Tucson.
A lo largo de más de 30 años de carrera, el Jefe Villareal es coautor de la Política de Evidencia de la Patrulla Fronteriza; se desempeñó como Coordinador de la Iniciativa de Seguridad Fronteriza, en Washington DC y fue fundamental en el establecimiento del Equipo de Búsqueda, Trauma y Rescate de la Patrulla Fronteriza, BORSTAR, sirviendo como Primer Comandante.
Antes de su selección, el Jefe Villareal se desempeñó en varios puestos de liderazgo entre ellos, Agente Adjunto de Patrulla de los Sectores de San Diego y El Centro.
También se ha desempeñado como agente asistente de jefe de patrulla y agente adjunto interino de patrulla para el Sector de Yuma.
El Jefe Villareal obtuvo una Maestría en Artes en Relaciones Internacionales por la Universidad de San Diego, una Licenciatura en Ciencias Políticas, por la Universidad del Estado de California (CSU), San Marcos y una Licenciatura en Artes, con énfasis en Pre-Ley.
En 2009 se graduó en la Academia de Liderazgo de Mando. Se graduó en el Programa de Estudiantes Ejecutivos Senior, de la Escuela de Gobierno John F. Kennedy, en la Universidad de Harvard.
"Espero trabajar con los hombres y mujeres del Sector de Tucson y confío en que continuaremos haciendo progresos en la seguridad fronteriza, aquí en Arizona", dijo el Jefe Villareal.
"Enfrentaremos los desafíos que puedan surgir con nuestros socios federales, estatales, locales y tribales, para construir comunidades fronterizas más seguras y una nación más segura".
END
AZMEX I3 6-3-19
AZMEX I3 6 MAR 2019
More than 700 Central American migrants taken into custody in El Paso
by KFOX14 Staff | Associated Press
Wednesday, March 6th 2019
https://kfoxtv.com/news/local/more-than-700-central-american-migrants-taken-into-custody-in-el-paso
Rio Grande River near the Chihuahuita neighborhood in southcentral El Paso.
EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14) —
Since midnight Wednesday, hundreds of migrants from Central America turned themselves in at the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso, according to Border Patrol.
Fresh footprints can be seen along a dirt embankment alongside the Rio Grande River near the Chihuahuita neighborhood in southcentral El Paso.
The migrants are being taken to the Border Patrol stations to be processed, according to Border Patrol agents Joe Romero.
Earlier today, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen insisted the crisis at the southern border is not manufactured, as she faced questions from Democrats for the first time since they took control of the House.
"We face a crisis — a real, serious and sustained crisis at our borders," she said at a House Homeland Security Committee hearing. "Make no mistake: This chain of human misery is getting worse."
She was asked about conversations with President Trump as he declared a national emergency at the border to try to gain funding for his proposed wall between the U.S. and Mexico.
"There is an emergency," Nielsen said. "I have seen the vulnerable populations. This is a true humanitarian crisis that the system is enabling. We have to change the laws."
Investigative reporter Genevieve Curtis is riding along with agents.
Follow her on Twitter at @CurtisKFOX_CBS as she documents the apprehensions.
END
More than 700 Central American migrants taken into custody in El Paso
by KFOX14 Staff | Associated Press
Wednesday, March 6th 2019
https://kfoxtv.com/news/local/more-than-700-central-american-migrants-taken-into-custody-in-el-paso
Rio Grande River near the Chihuahuita neighborhood in southcentral El Paso.
EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14) —
Since midnight Wednesday, hundreds of migrants from Central America turned themselves in at the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso, according to Border Patrol.
Fresh footprints can be seen along a dirt embankment alongside the Rio Grande River near the Chihuahuita neighborhood in southcentral El Paso.
The migrants are being taken to the Border Patrol stations to be processed, according to Border Patrol agents Joe Romero.
Earlier today, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen insisted the crisis at the southern border is not manufactured, as she faced questions from Democrats for the first time since they took control of the House.
"We face a crisis — a real, serious and sustained crisis at our borders," she said at a House Homeland Security Committee hearing. "Make no mistake: This chain of human misery is getting worse."
She was asked about conversations with President Trump as he declared a national emergency at the border to try to gain funding for his proposed wall between the U.S. and Mexico.
"There is an emergency," Nielsen said. "I have seen the vulnerable populations. This is a true humanitarian crisis that the system is enabling. We have to change the laws."
Investigative reporter Genevieve Curtis is riding along with agents.
Follow her on Twitter at @CurtisKFOX_CBS as she documents the apprehensions.
END
AZMEX SPECIAL 5-3-19
AZMEX SPECIAL 5 MAR 2019
Comment: still don't need that wall? Photos, etc. at links.
Gracias
Mexican government apologizes for deaths after police handed youths over to ruthless drug gang
Lucia I. Suarez Sang | Fox News
https://www.foxnews.com/world/mexican-government-apologizes-for-deaths-after-police-handed-youths-over-to-ruthless-drug-gang
A relative of five youths killed in 2016 after police kidnapped them and then turned them over to members of a drug gang, reacts during a public apology by the Veracruz state government, in Mexico City, Mexico March 4, 2019.
Mexican government officials offered a rare apology to the families of four innocent boys and one girl who were kidnapped by corrupt police officers and turned over to a brutal drug gang after mistaking them for members of a rival gang.
The five youths – identified as Bernardo Benitez, Jose Benitez, Susana Tapia, Mario Arturo Orozco and Jose Alfredo Gonzalez – were on their way home from a birthday party on January 11, 2016 when they were stopped by local police in the Gulf state of Veracruz, one of Mexico's most violent states that has seen an increase in deadly turf wars among increasingly splintered criminal cartels.
A Civil Forces police officer stands next to a banner with pictures of five youngsters who went missing January 11, 2016, in Tierra Blanca community, Veracruz State, Mexico. (AFP/Getty)
The corrupt police officers, colluding with the notoriously violent Jalisco New Generation Cartel, were of the mistaken belief that the youths had ties to a rival gang and turned them over to the cartel. They were murdered and their bodies incinerated, according to preliminary findings.
Some of their remains were identified four days later in a mass grave about 37 miles from where the five friends were first stopped.
Mexican businesswoman beheaded after husband 'wouldn't pay' ransom
The decapitated body of Mexican businesswoman Susana Carrera was found last week after her family was unable to pay kidnappers the ransom they demanded.
The grave at Rancho El Limon also contained the remains of hundreds of bodies and is thought to have been a dumping ground used by drug cartels and corrupt police officers, the BBC reported.
KIDNAPPINGS, MURDERS ON THE RISE IN MEXICAN STATE WHERE WOMAN WAS DECAPITATED: 'THERE IS A LOT OF SUFFERING GOING ON'
On Monday, Alejandro Encinas, the deputy interior minister of human rights, acknowledged the state's "profound responsibility" and vowed to revive the investigations into the case in which eight police officers were among the 21 suspects so far arrested, Reuters reported.
"We know that organized crime works with government officials at all levels," Encinas said at the event attended by family members at Mexico City's Museum of Memory and Tolerance.
No senior Veracruz security officials have been investigated in the case, a point criticized by the families.
Cuitlahuac Garcia, Veracruz's newly sworn-in governor, apologized to the relatives of the five murdered youths, saying that the "collusion between police and organized crime wasn't stopped in time."
Garcia, who was sworn in on December 1, has launched an emergency plan to drive down the number of disappeared and requested help from international organizations to find those missing.
MEXICAN BUSINESSWOMAN DECAPITATED AFTER 'FAMILY WOULDN'T PAY' RANSOM, REPORTS SAY
Bloody turf battles among increasingly splintered criminal cartels have left more than 40,000 people missing in the past two decades, as well as around 26,000 unidentified corpses in over 1,100 mass graves, according to official data.
Cartels fight to control trafficking routes, human smuggling, extortion, and kidnapping, among other activities.
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has launched a campaign aimed at persuading people to not break the law. Its slogan is: "We're all going to behave." (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)
Last month, local reports claimed there had been at least 366 murders in Veracruz in the first 80 days since Garcia – and new President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador – took office. That is more than 4.5 murder each day.
Lopez Obrador has launched a campaign aimed at persuading people not to break the law. Its slogan is: "We're all going to behave."
There were also at least 69 reported kidnappings over the same period. It was the highest across Mexico with the State of Mexico (Edomex) and Mexico reporting 63 and 32 kidnappings respectively, a nonprofit organization revealed last month.
Fifty-one of the kidnappings in Veracruz happened in the month of January, Alto al Secuestro reported.
CANCUN CLUB SHOOTING LEAVES 5 DEAD, 5 WOUNDED, AUTHORITIES SAY
Mexican government figures from January showed that homicide cases in Mexico rose by 15 percent in 2018 – with 28,816 investigations opened last year, compared to 25,036 the previous year. Each of these cases may have involved more than one victim, so the total number of homicides is likely to be higher.
American tourists risk death to vacation in Mexico
2018 promises to be one of the most violent years on record in Mexico. Homicides shot up 16 percent during the first half of this year as drug traffickers and gangs battle for dominance.
On Monday, relatives of the Veracruz youths said the government's apology was the first recognition that they were victims and not criminals as officials initially asserted when they went missing.
"More than anything, we want to reclaim the good name of our kids ... and demand justice for them and for thousands of others who experience the same thing," Columba Arroniz, a mother of one of the dead, told Reuters with tears streaming down her face.
The U.S. Department of State issued a travel advisory for Americans visiting Mexico last year, saying to exercise increased caution due to crime. While five Mexican states – including Michoacan and Sinaloa – are listed as places not recommended for travel, the advisory for Veracruz has no restrictions.
This case resembles that of 43 students who disappeared from the town of Iguala in 2014 after being seized by local police in Guerrero, who handed them over to a drug gang. To date, the remains of only one of the 43 have been definitely identified.
End
Comment: still don't need that wall? Photos, etc. at links.
Gracias
Mexican government apologizes for deaths after police handed youths over to ruthless drug gang
Lucia I. Suarez Sang | Fox News
https://www.foxnews.com/world/mexican-government-apologizes-for-deaths-after-police-handed-youths-over-to-ruthless-drug-gang
A relative of five youths killed in 2016 after police kidnapped them and then turned them over to members of a drug gang, reacts during a public apology by the Veracruz state government, in Mexico City, Mexico March 4, 2019.
Mexican government officials offered a rare apology to the families of four innocent boys and one girl who were kidnapped by corrupt police officers and turned over to a brutal drug gang after mistaking them for members of a rival gang.
The five youths – identified as Bernardo Benitez, Jose Benitez, Susana Tapia, Mario Arturo Orozco and Jose Alfredo Gonzalez – were on their way home from a birthday party on January 11, 2016 when they were stopped by local police in the Gulf state of Veracruz, one of Mexico's most violent states that has seen an increase in deadly turf wars among increasingly splintered criminal cartels.
A Civil Forces police officer stands next to a banner with pictures of five youngsters who went missing January 11, 2016, in Tierra Blanca community, Veracruz State, Mexico. (AFP/Getty)
The corrupt police officers, colluding with the notoriously violent Jalisco New Generation Cartel, were of the mistaken belief that the youths had ties to a rival gang and turned them over to the cartel. They were murdered and their bodies incinerated, according to preliminary findings.
Some of their remains were identified four days later in a mass grave about 37 miles from where the five friends were first stopped.
Mexican businesswoman beheaded after husband 'wouldn't pay' ransom
The decapitated body of Mexican businesswoman Susana Carrera was found last week after her family was unable to pay kidnappers the ransom they demanded.
The grave at Rancho El Limon also contained the remains of hundreds of bodies and is thought to have been a dumping ground used by drug cartels and corrupt police officers, the BBC reported.
KIDNAPPINGS, MURDERS ON THE RISE IN MEXICAN STATE WHERE WOMAN WAS DECAPITATED: 'THERE IS A LOT OF SUFFERING GOING ON'
On Monday, Alejandro Encinas, the deputy interior minister of human rights, acknowledged the state's "profound responsibility" and vowed to revive the investigations into the case in which eight police officers were among the 21 suspects so far arrested, Reuters reported.
"We know that organized crime works with government officials at all levels," Encinas said at the event attended by family members at Mexico City's Museum of Memory and Tolerance.
No senior Veracruz security officials have been investigated in the case, a point criticized by the families.
Cuitlahuac Garcia, Veracruz's newly sworn-in governor, apologized to the relatives of the five murdered youths, saying that the "collusion between police and organized crime wasn't stopped in time."
Garcia, who was sworn in on December 1, has launched an emergency plan to drive down the number of disappeared and requested help from international organizations to find those missing.
MEXICAN BUSINESSWOMAN DECAPITATED AFTER 'FAMILY WOULDN'T PAY' RANSOM, REPORTS SAY
Bloody turf battles among increasingly splintered criminal cartels have left more than 40,000 people missing in the past two decades, as well as around 26,000 unidentified corpses in over 1,100 mass graves, according to official data.
Cartels fight to control trafficking routes, human smuggling, extortion, and kidnapping, among other activities.
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has launched a campaign aimed at persuading people to not break the law. Its slogan is: "We're all going to behave." (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)
Last month, local reports claimed there had been at least 366 murders in Veracruz in the first 80 days since Garcia – and new President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador – took office. That is more than 4.5 murder each day.
Lopez Obrador has launched a campaign aimed at persuading people not to break the law. Its slogan is: "We're all going to behave."
There were also at least 69 reported kidnappings over the same period. It was the highest across Mexico with the State of Mexico (Edomex) and Mexico reporting 63 and 32 kidnappings respectively, a nonprofit organization revealed last month.
Fifty-one of the kidnappings in Veracruz happened in the month of January, Alto al Secuestro reported.
CANCUN CLUB SHOOTING LEAVES 5 DEAD, 5 WOUNDED, AUTHORITIES SAY
Mexican government figures from January showed that homicide cases in Mexico rose by 15 percent in 2018 – with 28,816 investigations opened last year, compared to 25,036 the previous year. Each of these cases may have involved more than one victim, so the total number of homicides is likely to be higher.
American tourists risk death to vacation in Mexico
2018 promises to be one of the most violent years on record in Mexico. Homicides shot up 16 percent during the first half of this year as drug traffickers and gangs battle for dominance.
On Monday, relatives of the Veracruz youths said the government's apology was the first recognition that they were victims and not criminals as officials initially asserted when they went missing.
"More than anything, we want to reclaim the good name of our kids ... and demand justice for them and for thousands of others who experience the same thing," Columba Arroniz, a mother of one of the dead, told Reuters with tears streaming down her face.
The U.S. Department of State issued a travel advisory for Americans visiting Mexico last year, saying to exercise increased caution due to crime. While five Mexican states – including Michoacan and Sinaloa – are listed as places not recommended for travel, the advisory for Veracruz has no restrictions.
This case resembles that of 43 students who disappeared from the town of Iguala in 2014 after being seized by local police in Guerrero, who handed them over to a drug gang. To date, the remains of only one of the 43 have been definitely identified.
End
Tuesday, March 5, 2019
AZMEX UPDATE2 5-3-19
AZMEX UPDATE2 5 MAR 2019
Note: from a friend. There will be no link.
Thx
Nancy Pelosie and her treasonous Democratic colleagues care more about illegals than the good citizens of this country. Selfish, self serving evils!!! Anything for a vote!!
________________________________
From L.
"I live on the Border and NO one but us knows what is happening.
"I live 1/2 mile from the border in El Indio, Texas. Last week, we had over 40 people pass through our ranch.
One group of about 15 men pulled a gun on my husband and had a 13 yr old Mexican girl that they kidnapped from Guerrerro, MX.
She had blood all over her and had urinated on herself
My husband was able to, with the help of Border Patrol agents in a helicopter who passed over, get the gun from the illegal man (he was Honduran)
and they rushed the poor girl to the emergency room for help because she had in fact been kidnapped and gang raped by these men.
This is just one of many stories we have.
Two nights ago, 3 men came up to our house. One of them was an elderly man who was almost dead.
We gave them water and protein bars, called BP and 911 for the man to go to the emergency room.
We are kind people and believe in helping people in need BUT there have been 3 attacks on my husband on our ranch,
2 of which were directly at my home, in the last 3 months.
And that really means something because we are considered an area that does not NEED alot of help!!!
I got so MAD when I watched and heard what Pelosi and Schumer said concerning Trump's "manufactured" drama with the border.
That is such garbage!!!! They are ignorant liars!!! How many people have to be hurt or attacked?
There has to be someone in our government who stands up and helps our Border Patrol. From Eagle Pass to Laredo,
there are only 3-5 guys on call, and it could be 2 guys against a group of 50+.
Its horrible!! We need help!! The wall needs to be built, not at the port of entries but between them.
Pelosi is a moron if she thinks that added more security at the borders will help because,
Hello Nancy, they are NOT COMING THROUGH THE BORDERS. ( ports of entry )
THEY ARE COMING THROUGH ( the ) MESQUITE AND BRUSH.
End
Note: from a friend. There will be no link.
Thx
Nancy Pelosie and her treasonous Democratic colleagues care more about illegals than the good citizens of this country. Selfish, self serving evils!!! Anything for a vote!!
________________________________
From L.
"I live on the Border and NO one but us knows what is happening.
"I live 1/2 mile from the border in El Indio, Texas. Last week, we had over 40 people pass through our ranch.
One group of about 15 men pulled a gun on my husband and had a 13 yr old Mexican girl that they kidnapped from Guerrerro, MX.
She had blood all over her and had urinated on herself
My husband was able to, with the help of Border Patrol agents in a helicopter who passed over, get the gun from the illegal man (he was Honduran)
and they rushed the poor girl to the emergency room for help because she had in fact been kidnapped and gang raped by these men.
This is just one of many stories we have.
Two nights ago, 3 men came up to our house. One of them was an elderly man who was almost dead.
We gave them water and protein bars, called BP and 911 for the man to go to the emergency room.
We are kind people and believe in helping people in need BUT there have been 3 attacks on my husband on our ranch,
2 of which were directly at my home, in the last 3 months.
And that really means something because we are considered an area that does not NEED alot of help!!!
I got so MAD when I watched and heard what Pelosi and Schumer said concerning Trump's "manufactured" drama with the border.
That is such garbage!!!! They are ignorant liars!!! How many people have to be hurt or attacked?
There has to be someone in our government who stands up and helps our Border Patrol. From Eagle Pass to Laredo,
there are only 3-5 guys on call, and it could be 2 guys against a group of 50+.
Its horrible!! We need help!! The wall needs to be built, not at the port of entries but between them.
Pelosi is a moron if she thinks that added more security at the borders will help because,
Hello Nancy, they are NOT COMING THROUGH THE BORDERS. ( ports of entry )
THEY ARE COMING THROUGH ( the ) MESQUITE AND BRUSH.
End
AZMEX UPDATE 5-3-19
AZMEX UPDATE 5 MAR 2019
Note: video, etc. at link.
Poisoned pills: Phoenix firefighter, war hero dies after taking fentanyl-laced pill
LiAna Enriquez
Posted Mar 3, 2019
https://www.azfamily.com/news/investigations/opioid_crisis/fentanyl/poisoned-pills-phoenix-firefighter-war-hero-dies-after-taking-fentanyl/article_641128a2-3dfb-11e9-aa01-ef9d2c536fef.html
Juston Doherty died after an accidental mixed drug overdose involving fentanyl.
PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) - It can be called a silent killer, and to say it's scary understates what is happening in neighborhoods across the Valley.
One Phoenix family knows all too well the power of this. He was a firefighter, a war hero and a father
who was taken down by something so small but so deadly.
It only takes something as small as two grains of sand to take a life and most people have no idea what they're taking.
[RELATED: AZ police assuming every pill sold on the street laced with deadly drug]
"This was a guy who protected me. I didn't know how to feel safe in the world," says Nicole Elinski,
as she tearfully remembers her brother, Juston Doherty.
He was a highly decorated Army Ranger and military veteran.
He continued to serve his country as a training instructor for the Army National Guard and as a Phoenix Fire captain.
"He dedicated his life to saving people," said Elinski.
At 45 years old, Doherty was at the peak of his life, when it suddenly came to an end.
"I fell to the ground and I was like there's just no way," said Elinski.
Last July, while on duty at the National Guard base in Phoenix, Doherty was found dead.
"When the (Medical Examiner's) report came out, we were completely blindsided," said Elinski.
That report stated Doherty died of an accidental mixed drug overdose.
"On the day that he passed, he was at drill working with a broken hand, awaiting surgery.
He was under a doctor's care," said Elinski.
Doherty's sister says the "substances" in his system were prescribed medications taken as directed, except for one, fentanyl.
[RELATED: What is fentanyl and why is it 'the deadliest drug in the world'?]
"He knew more than the average person what that drug could do so there's just no way
that my brother would willingly take something knowing that it had fentanyl in it," said Elinski.
She says authorities told them the fentanyl in his system came from a pressed pill.
"What they're doing is they're putting together pills that look, this was confirmed by an undercover cop,
that they look identical to regular Percocet," said Elinski.
"Four years ago, we seized zero fentanyl in Arizona.
Last year, we seized enough Fentanyl to kill 75 to 80 million people"
said Arizona Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Doug Coleman.
[SPECIAL SECTION: Fentanyl's fatal fallout]
He says this is the worst and most potent drug crisis he's ever seen.
"So the cartels realized that they could manufacture these pressed pills that look like oxycodone pills
here in the United States. They're fentanyl-laced pills," said Coleman.
He says Arizona is being hit especially hard because it's a main smuggling hub.
"We still see some smaller quantities coming in from China but the major production, the mass quantities,
those are coming in along southern borders specifically mainly through Arizona," Coleman said.
[RELATED: Americans more likely to die by opioid overdose than in a car crash]
And he says it only takes the smallest amount to be lethal.
"Two milligrams is like, it's literally like a grain of sand," said Coleman.
Elinski believes her brother was in so much pain and trying to work through it that he took what he thought was just a pain pill.
"I think somebody said, 'I see you struggling,' and I don't believe they even knew that there was fentanyl
or that there was the amount of fentanyl in the pill.
I don't think anybody did something to him on purpose.
I believe that they gave it to him thinking they were helping him," Elinski said.
[TIMELINE: Emergence of the opioid crisis]
It turned out to be one laced pill that ended it all.
"I miss my brother every day and if it can happen to him, it can happen to anyone," said Elinski.
One law enforcement official said that pretty much any pain pill bought off the street or purchased without a prescription
will likely have fentanyl.
These pills are coming from Mexico, and the reason for the fentanyl comes down to money.
"One hundred ninety people are dying every day," Coleman said.
The body count behind the fentanyl crisis is devastating.
"We're losing entire pieces of a generation of young America to this epidemic," says Coleman.
A death sweep is continuing to spread across the U.S.
"We're seizing heroin or fentanyl powder or fentanyl pills just about every single day," said Coleman.
So, what brought on this drug's infectious killing spree? Demand and greed, according to Coleman.
"Initially, it came in from foreign sources, mainly the Chinese.
The Mexican cartel realized that someone was cutting in on their business
and so they started ordering the precursor chemicals,
the chemicals you need to actually make fentanyl and they started manufacturing it themselves," said Coleman.
(From China?)
He says it comes down to basic economics.
"If you make a kilogram of fentanyl well, that's a million milligrams. So if you split that all the way up to 2 milligrams per pill,
you've just made 500,000 pills from that 1 kilogram of pure fentanyl," said Coleman.
And he says the return on investment is huge.
"Well, you can spend $2,500 and because you can sell it in such small quantities,
you can make millions of dollars off of that $2,500 investment," said Coleman.
It's a money machine that's turned into a death trap.
"This is not [done] in a chemical laboratory.
This is in somebody's garage, so when they mix everything up to start your pill press,
you don't know if that pill has 2 milligrams of fentanyl, which you might be able to survive,
or 8 milligrams of fentanyl and that's the end of their life," said Coleman.
The average pill in the Valley costs about $10 to $15 per pill.
But to manufacture that one pill in Mexico, it costs mere pennies.
End
Re: AZMEX UPDATE 4-3-19
Mesa, AZ homes searched map at link.
https://www.azfamily.com/map-mesa-homes-searched-as-part-of-drug-bust/html_9fc3fb6a-3ec6-11e9-a1fc-17b961c38a4d.html
DEA officials bust drug ring operation involving MS-13
DEA officials say six people, including a member of MS-13, have been arrested after a lengthy multi-agency investigation.
End
Note: video, etc. at link.
Poisoned pills: Phoenix firefighter, war hero dies after taking fentanyl-laced pill
LiAna Enriquez
Posted Mar 3, 2019
https://www.azfamily.com/news/investigations/opioid_crisis/fentanyl/poisoned-pills-phoenix-firefighter-war-hero-dies-after-taking-fentanyl/article_641128a2-3dfb-11e9-aa01-ef9d2c536fef.html
Juston Doherty died after an accidental mixed drug overdose involving fentanyl.
PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) - It can be called a silent killer, and to say it's scary understates what is happening in neighborhoods across the Valley.
One Phoenix family knows all too well the power of this. He was a firefighter, a war hero and a father
who was taken down by something so small but so deadly.
It only takes something as small as two grains of sand to take a life and most people have no idea what they're taking.
[RELATED: AZ police assuming every pill sold on the street laced with deadly drug]
"This was a guy who protected me. I didn't know how to feel safe in the world," says Nicole Elinski,
as she tearfully remembers her brother, Juston Doherty.
He was a highly decorated Army Ranger and military veteran.
He continued to serve his country as a training instructor for the Army National Guard and as a Phoenix Fire captain.
"He dedicated his life to saving people," said Elinski.
At 45 years old, Doherty was at the peak of his life, when it suddenly came to an end.
"I fell to the ground and I was like there's just no way," said Elinski.
Last July, while on duty at the National Guard base in Phoenix, Doherty was found dead.
"When the (Medical Examiner's) report came out, we were completely blindsided," said Elinski.
That report stated Doherty died of an accidental mixed drug overdose.
"On the day that he passed, he was at drill working with a broken hand, awaiting surgery.
He was under a doctor's care," said Elinski.
Doherty's sister says the "substances" in his system were prescribed medications taken as directed, except for one, fentanyl.
[RELATED: What is fentanyl and why is it 'the deadliest drug in the world'?]
"He knew more than the average person what that drug could do so there's just no way
that my brother would willingly take something knowing that it had fentanyl in it," said Elinski.
She says authorities told them the fentanyl in his system came from a pressed pill.
"What they're doing is they're putting together pills that look, this was confirmed by an undercover cop,
that they look identical to regular Percocet," said Elinski.
"Four years ago, we seized zero fentanyl in Arizona.
Last year, we seized enough Fentanyl to kill 75 to 80 million people"
said Arizona Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Doug Coleman.
[SPECIAL SECTION: Fentanyl's fatal fallout]
He says this is the worst and most potent drug crisis he's ever seen.
"So the cartels realized that they could manufacture these pressed pills that look like oxycodone pills
here in the United States. They're fentanyl-laced pills," said Coleman.
He says Arizona is being hit especially hard because it's a main smuggling hub.
"We still see some smaller quantities coming in from China but the major production, the mass quantities,
those are coming in along southern borders specifically mainly through Arizona," Coleman said.
[RELATED: Americans more likely to die by opioid overdose than in a car crash]
And he says it only takes the smallest amount to be lethal.
"Two milligrams is like, it's literally like a grain of sand," said Coleman.
Elinski believes her brother was in so much pain and trying to work through it that he took what he thought was just a pain pill.
"I think somebody said, 'I see you struggling,' and I don't believe they even knew that there was fentanyl
or that there was the amount of fentanyl in the pill.
I don't think anybody did something to him on purpose.
I believe that they gave it to him thinking they were helping him," Elinski said.
[TIMELINE: Emergence of the opioid crisis]
It turned out to be one laced pill that ended it all.
"I miss my brother every day and if it can happen to him, it can happen to anyone," said Elinski.
One law enforcement official said that pretty much any pain pill bought off the street or purchased without a prescription
will likely have fentanyl.
These pills are coming from Mexico, and the reason for the fentanyl comes down to money.
"One hundred ninety people are dying every day," Coleman said.
The body count behind the fentanyl crisis is devastating.
"We're losing entire pieces of a generation of young America to this epidemic," says Coleman.
A death sweep is continuing to spread across the U.S.
"We're seizing heroin or fentanyl powder or fentanyl pills just about every single day," said Coleman.
So, what brought on this drug's infectious killing spree? Demand and greed, according to Coleman.
"Initially, it came in from foreign sources, mainly the Chinese.
The Mexican cartel realized that someone was cutting in on their business
and so they started ordering the precursor chemicals,
the chemicals you need to actually make fentanyl and they started manufacturing it themselves," said Coleman.
(From China?)
He says it comes down to basic economics.
"If you make a kilogram of fentanyl well, that's a million milligrams. So if you split that all the way up to 2 milligrams per pill,
you've just made 500,000 pills from that 1 kilogram of pure fentanyl," said Coleman.
And he says the return on investment is huge.
"Well, you can spend $2,500 and because you can sell it in such small quantities,
you can make millions of dollars off of that $2,500 investment," said Coleman.
It's a money machine that's turned into a death trap.
"This is not [done] in a chemical laboratory.
This is in somebody's garage, so when they mix everything up to start your pill press,
you don't know if that pill has 2 milligrams of fentanyl, which you might be able to survive,
or 8 milligrams of fentanyl and that's the end of their life," said Coleman.
The average pill in the Valley costs about $10 to $15 per pill.
But to manufacture that one pill in Mexico, it costs mere pennies.
End
Re: AZMEX UPDATE 4-3-19
Mesa, AZ homes searched map at link.
https://www.azfamily.com/map-mesa-homes-searched-as-part-of-drug-bust/html_9fc3fb6a-3ec6-11e9-a1fc-17b961c38a4d.html
DEA officials bust drug ring operation involving MS-13
DEA officials say six people, including a member of MS-13, have been arrested after a lengthy multi-agency investigation.
End
AZMEX UPDATE 4-3-19
AZMEX UPDATE 4 MAR 2019
Note: mug shots at links. No info on immigration status of the several below, if any.
Thx
DEA: Six arrested in East Valley drug bust
Posted: 2:14 PM, Mar 04, 2019 Updated: 2:21 PM, Mar 04, 2019
By: abc15.com staff
https://www.abc15.com/news/region-northeast-valley/scottsdale/dea-six-arrested-in-east-valley-drug-bust
Photo by: Courtesy Drug Enforcement Agency
SCOTTSDALE, AZ — Authorities have arrested six people in connection with a drug investigation in the East Valley.
The Drug Enforcement Agency said it worked with the Scottsdale Police Department to investigate narcotics activity by an organization last year.
The case led authorities to search four homes on March 1. Investigators say they collectively found two kilograms of cocaine,
1,000 suspected fentanyl pills, $28,000 in cash and 16 weapons, some of which had been reported as stolen.
Authorities also found body armor and thousands of rounds of ammunition.
One of those arrested, Jose Gonzalez-Ramos, admitted to being a member of the MS-13 gang, the DEA said.
The five others arrested were Yasary Bejarano, Luis Adrian Gonzalez Perez, Carlos Daniel Pineda Martinez,
Jorge Marin Cuevas, and John Hernandez Vera.
All will face various state drug and weapons charges, according to a news release.
End
Also:
http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/2019/03/04/dea-arrests-six-drug-charges-including-ms-gang-member/
https://www.12news.com/article/news/crime/dea-busts-phoenix-drug-operation-arrests-six-including-ms-13-member-agency-says/75-4fec68b5-273e-4c7b-88bf-8caf478c7b12
More:
Truck driver charged; caught with 40 pounds of meth in Eloy
Staff Reports Mar 4, 2019 Updated 7 min ago
https://www.pinalcentral.com/eloy_enterprise/news/truck-driver-charged-caught-with-pounds-of-meth-in-eloy/article_ceae003e-cb40-5e61-b7ca-e2853997aaba.html
ELOY — A truck driver is facing criminal charges after authorities allegedly found about 40 pounds of methamphetamine
among his cargo during a traffic stop in Eloy.
According to a criminal complaint filed last week in Pinal County Superior Court, 30-year-old Juan Felix-Sotelo
has been charged with possessing and transporting dangerous drugs, a Class 2 felony.
An Arizona Department of Public Safety officer stopped a commercial vehicle driven by Felix-Sotelo on Feb. 21
for speeding through a construction zone on Interstate 10. The driver exited at Sunland Gin Road and stopped at the Petro Truck Stop.
The driver told the DPS officer he was transporting produce from California to Texas.
The officer was given consent to search the truck and uncovered an ice chest containing 39 bundles of crystal meth.
According to DPS, the narcotics was concealed with a towel and bottles of water.
Felix-Sotelo and a passenger, Raymundo Felix, were arrested and taken to the Pinal County jail.
They're both being held on $75,000 bonds and were arraigned on Friday in Superior Court.
End
Still more:
Feds: Arizona smuggling ring used US banks to transfer $1M
10 hrs ago
https://www.pinalcentral.com/arizona_news/feds-arizona-smuggling-ring-used-us-banks-to-transfer-m/article_ad1e9a20-9c1c-5384-a2ac-460b81641336.html
TUCSON (AP) — Federal authorities say a southern Arizona smuggling ring used the U.S. banking system
to transfer more than $1 million.
The Arizona Daily Star reports it found sworn affidavits filed in U.S. District Court in Tucson that described the money being deposited
into 22 bank accounts controlled by alleged ringleader Audias Sanchez Colin.
He was one of 27 people accused of conspiring to transport and harbor people who were in the country illegally
and launder the proceeds of that conspiracy.
The 38-year-old Sanchez faces between eight and 10 years in federal prison when he's sentenced.
His sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 12.
Authorities say the operation allegedly moved thousands of migrants from Mexico and Central America to the United States
and then to various destinations around the country.
End
Note: mug shots at links. No info on immigration status of the several below, if any.
Thx
DEA: Six arrested in East Valley drug bust
Posted: 2:14 PM, Mar 04, 2019 Updated: 2:21 PM, Mar 04, 2019
By: abc15.com staff
https://www.abc15.com/news/region-northeast-valley/scottsdale/dea-six-arrested-in-east-valley-drug-bust
Photo by: Courtesy Drug Enforcement Agency
SCOTTSDALE, AZ — Authorities have arrested six people in connection with a drug investigation in the East Valley.
The Drug Enforcement Agency said it worked with the Scottsdale Police Department to investigate narcotics activity by an organization last year.
The case led authorities to search four homes on March 1. Investigators say they collectively found two kilograms of cocaine,
1,000 suspected fentanyl pills, $28,000 in cash and 16 weapons, some of which had been reported as stolen.
Authorities also found body armor and thousands of rounds of ammunition.
One of those arrested, Jose Gonzalez-Ramos, admitted to being a member of the MS-13 gang, the DEA said.
The five others arrested were Yasary Bejarano, Luis Adrian Gonzalez Perez, Carlos Daniel Pineda Martinez,
Jorge Marin Cuevas, and John Hernandez Vera.
All will face various state drug and weapons charges, according to a news release.
End
Also:
http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/2019/03/04/dea-arrests-six-drug-charges-including-ms-gang-member/
https://www.12news.com/article/news/crime/dea-busts-phoenix-drug-operation-arrests-six-including-ms-13-member-agency-says/75-4fec68b5-273e-4c7b-88bf-8caf478c7b12
More:
Truck driver charged; caught with 40 pounds of meth in Eloy
Staff Reports Mar 4, 2019 Updated 7 min ago
https://www.pinalcentral.com/eloy_enterprise/news/truck-driver-charged-caught-with-pounds-of-meth-in-eloy/article_ceae003e-cb40-5e61-b7ca-e2853997aaba.html
ELOY — A truck driver is facing criminal charges after authorities allegedly found about 40 pounds of methamphetamine
among his cargo during a traffic stop in Eloy.
According to a criminal complaint filed last week in Pinal County Superior Court, 30-year-old Juan Felix-Sotelo
has been charged with possessing and transporting dangerous drugs, a Class 2 felony.
An Arizona Department of Public Safety officer stopped a commercial vehicle driven by Felix-Sotelo on Feb. 21
for speeding through a construction zone on Interstate 10. The driver exited at Sunland Gin Road and stopped at the Petro Truck Stop.
The driver told the DPS officer he was transporting produce from California to Texas.
The officer was given consent to search the truck and uncovered an ice chest containing 39 bundles of crystal meth.
According to DPS, the narcotics was concealed with a towel and bottles of water.
Felix-Sotelo and a passenger, Raymundo Felix, were arrested and taken to the Pinal County jail.
They're both being held on $75,000 bonds and were arraigned on Friday in Superior Court.
End
Still more:
Feds: Arizona smuggling ring used US banks to transfer $1M
10 hrs ago
https://www.pinalcentral.com/arizona_news/feds-arizona-smuggling-ring-used-us-banks-to-transfer-m/article_ad1e9a20-9c1c-5384-a2ac-460b81641336.html
TUCSON (AP) — Federal authorities say a southern Arizona smuggling ring used the U.S. banking system
to transfer more than $1 million.
The Arizona Daily Star reports it found sworn affidavits filed in U.S. District Court in Tucson that described the money being deposited
into 22 bank accounts controlled by alleged ringleader Audias Sanchez Colin.
He was one of 27 people accused of conspiring to transport and harbor people who were in the country illegally
and launder the proceeds of that conspiracy.
The 38-year-old Sanchez faces between eight and 10 years in federal prison when he's sentenced.
His sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 12.
Authorities say the operation allegedly moved thousands of migrants from Mexico and Central America to the United States
and then to various destinations around the country.
End
AZMEX I3 4-3-19
AZMEX I3 4 MAR 2019
Note: Fined a whole $280 ! Yet another federal fail?
Thx
"No More Deaths" volunteers plead guilty to civil violations on the Cabeza Prieta national wildlife refuge
pic of jail cell (Source: KAIT-TV)
March 4, 2019 at 3:44 PM MST - Updated March 4 at 3:44 PM
http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/2019/03/04/no-more-deaths-volunteers-plead-guilty-civil-violations-cabeza-prieta-national-wildlife-refuge/
TUCSON, AZ (KOLD News 13) - On Mar. 4, 2019, Caitlin Persis Deighan, Zoe E. Anderson, Logan Thomas Hollarsmith, and Rebecca Kate Grossman-Richeimer entered into a plea agreement in which the defendants pled guilty to a civil infraction, and the United States agreed to dismiss the criminal charges against them.
Each defendant was also ordered to pay a $280 fine.
On Aug. 19, 2017, United States Fish and Wildlife Service officers encountered the defendants on the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge in Ajo, Arizona. The defendants did not have a valid permit to enter the refuge. Deighan admitted to driving the group to an area known as Charlie Bell Well, which is located in a congressionally designated wilderness refuge.
"Our office is pleased that this matter was resolved through civil enforcement in which the defendants fully accepted responsibility for their illegal actions on a wilderness refuge specifically safeguarded by Congress,"
stated First Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth A. Strange.
"Our office will continue to review violations of federal law occurring within protected federal lands on a case-by-case basis."
END
Note: Fined a whole $280 ! Yet another federal fail?
Thx
"No More Deaths" volunteers plead guilty to civil violations on the Cabeza Prieta national wildlife refuge
pic of jail cell (Source: KAIT-TV)
March 4, 2019 at 3:44 PM MST - Updated March 4 at 3:44 PM
http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/2019/03/04/no-more-deaths-volunteers-plead-guilty-civil-violations-cabeza-prieta-national-wildlife-refuge/
TUCSON, AZ (KOLD News 13) - On Mar. 4, 2019, Caitlin Persis Deighan, Zoe E. Anderson, Logan Thomas Hollarsmith, and Rebecca Kate Grossman-Richeimer entered into a plea agreement in which the defendants pled guilty to a civil infraction, and the United States agreed to dismiss the criminal charges against them.
Each defendant was also ordered to pay a $280 fine.
On Aug. 19, 2017, United States Fish and Wildlife Service officers encountered the defendants on the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge in Ajo, Arizona. The defendants did not have a valid permit to enter the refuge. Deighan admitted to driving the group to an area known as Charlie Bell Well, which is located in a congressionally designated wilderness refuge.
"Our office is pleased that this matter was resolved through civil enforcement in which the defendants fully accepted responsibility for their illegal actions on a wilderness refuge specifically safeguarded by Congress,"
stated First Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth A. Strange.
"Our office will continue to review violations of federal law occurring within protected federal lands on a case-by-case basis."
END
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