Clipmarks | Customs and border officers Clips

Homeland Security & Border Agent Corruption Rampant

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 08:09:59 GMT

clipped by: blueridge
clipper's remarks: Money and sex rule over law and order. You can put a man in uniform, but that won't make him good, only gives him a cover or even opportunity. Amazing article documenting wide-spread corruption.

Just another example that Americans should be more concerned about internal corruptions and crimes than foreign enemies.

Clip Source: www.borderfirereport.net

U.S. Border Agents Work For Mexican Smugglers

Corruption Chronicles
Corruption among federal officers guarding the U.S.-Mexico border is so rampant that the government created an internal web site devoted to recently convicted border agents and lie detector tests will be administered to ensure future applicants don’t already work for smuggling organizations.

A growing number of agents with the Homeland Security agency in charge of protecting the U.S. from terrorists, drugs and illegal immigrants are collaborating with Mexican smuggling operations to allow illegal immigrants, drugs, weapons and possibly terrorists into the country.

Mexican smugglers lure the federal officers with attractive women and lots of cash. In return, those hired to guard the border assure the safe passage of truckloads of illegal immigrants, drugs and other contraband into the United States. Some have even used their government-issued vehicles to shuttle illegal aliens from Mexico to safe houses north

Tags: homeland security, us customs, ethics, crime

baby diaper

Fri, 23 May 2008 06:08:51 GMT

clipped by: snsshannon

Clip Source: www.chron.com

May 22, 2008, 5:11PM
$10,000 found in baby's diaper

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PHARR, Texas — Of all the things that could make a baby fuss, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers weren't expecting this: $10,000 found stuffed into the diaper of a crying 15-month-old at the Pharr International Bridge.

Border officials say unusual bulges that turned out to be cash on two women traveling with the baby led inspectors to check the crying baby as well. Altogether, inspectors found $43,317 in undeclared cash on the women, baby girl and a man traveling with them.

The group was crossing into Mexico on Tuesday morning when they were stopped.

Authorities say the man, Esteban Soto Yanez, a Mexican citizen, was arrested on illegal entry charges. One woman, a resident alien, was released and the infant and her mother were deported to Mexico.

Feds Detain Illegal Immigrants Who Are Trying To Leave USA

Thu, 08 May 2008 03:00:36 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: The paper reports that U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers have been stopping vehicles and checking the immigration status of travelers near the San Diego-Tijuana border crossing. blogs.usatoday.com

"Each one of these people will then report increased enforcement to family and friends when they do get home, and that will give them second thoughts about sneaking back into the U.S.," he said.

By Richard Marosi, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
May 7, 2008

Clip Source: blogs.usatoday.com

The government has a new approach to border enforcement. Instead of just focusing on people who are entering the country illegally, the Los Angeles Times says federal agents are also arresting undocumented foreigners who are trying to leave the United States.

"The illegal immigrants they apprehend are typically turned over to the U.S. Border Patrol for processing," according to the paper. "Unless they have serious criminal records or numerous immigration violations, most are returned to Mexico within a few hours."

Tags: customs and border officers, san diego-tijuana, la-times, criminal record/immigration violations

Appeals Court Says Laptops Fair Game for Border Searches

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 23:04:39 GMT

clipped by: Tylast
clipper's remarks: Yeah, they caught ONE scum bag, but now ALL of us will suffer.

Clip Source: www.dailybreeze.com

It may hold our financial records, innermost thoughts and pictures of our loved ones - but there's nothing private about a laptop computer at the nation's borders, a federal appeals court ruled Monday.

In a closely watched search-and-seizure case, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a lower court's decision to toss evidence of alleged child pornography found on a traveler's computer at Los Angeles International Airport.

Michael Timothy Arnold was a 44-year-old Orange County math teacher when he arrived July 17, 2005, at the LAX customs counter after a three-week trip in the Philippines.

Two U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officers turned on his laptop, clicked on a file and found a photo of two nude women, according to the opinion.

Arnold was detained and his computer and other equipment were searched. Numerous images of alleged child pornography were found.

Crimes by Homeland Security agents stir alert

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 04:42:14 GMT

clipped by: papananook

Clip Source: www.smirkingchimp.com

Drugs, fighting,rape,theft: All in a day's work for....DHS!

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is supposed to stop these types of crimes. Instead, so many of its officers have been charged with committing those crimes themselves that their boss in Washington recently issued an alert about the ''disturbing events'' and the ``increase in the number of employee arrests.''

Elizabeth Moran-Toala, a six-year veteran, allegedly accessed an electronic database known as Treasury Enforcement Communications System, a tool to stop illegal drug imports.

Other recent South Florida cases -- mirroring a pattern along border states -- have involved officers and agents accepting payoffs for migrant smuggling, drug trafficking, witness tampering, embezzlement and rape.

Your tax dollars at work.

Defund these criminals.

Tighter ID Rules for U.S. Border Begin

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 13:13:41 GMT

clipped by: spherepet

Clip Source: hosted.ap.org

Tighter ID Rules for U.S. Border Begin

Jan 31, 8:09 AM EST

By ARTHUR H. ROTSTEIN

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) -- New rules for the types of identification U.S. or Canadian citizens must present to cross into the country shouldn't cause significant delays and won't be strictly enforced at first, a senior federal official said.

Under the rules going into effect Thursday, people will no longer be allowed to simply declare to immigration officers at border crossings that they are citizens, Jayson Ahern, deputy commissioner with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said Tuesday.

Instead, those 19 and older will have to show proof of citizenship - a passport, trusted traveler card or a birth certificate and government-issued ID such as a driver's license.

"We'll be asking those who cross our borders to present to us secure, more reliable documents to prove citizenship and to confirm their identity," said Ahern, who is heading a national effort to call attention to the changes.

Tags: canada, usa, customs

Is that a bird in your pocket, Sir?

Tue, 01 Jan 2008 13:54:43 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

LEWISTON, N.Y. — Border agents pulled four live birds from the pockets of a pigeon collector and a traveling companion trying to enter the United States from Canada.

The pair were stopped Sunday at the Lewiston-Queenston Bridge border crossing, where they told inspectors they were on their way to visit an uncle in LeRoy, outside Rochester, Customs and Border Protection spokesman Kevin Corsaro said.

Inspectors found the pigeons wrapped and taped from neck to tail in pockets of the pair's coats after they asked the men from Uxbridge, Ontario, to remove their jackets.

One man told CBP officers he is a pigeon collector who belongs to a club that trades and sells birds of various colors. He said he was taking the birds to trade or sell to his uncle.

The men, whose names were not released, were fined $1,000 and the case was referred to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and United States Department of Agriculture inspectors for possible criminal charges, Corsaro said.

21,000 Inadmissible Aliens Cross Border Entry Port

Tue, 06 Nov 2007 03:54:26 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: The author of the GAO report, Richard Stana, said most of those who were wrongly allowed to enter were economic migrants who did not present a security risk.

"But as we saw in the recent past, it doesn't take too many people getting through the ports of entry to cause some real trouble," he said. "And not everyone who comes in and is a danger needs to be a terrorist. It could be someone connected with a criminal enterprise."

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

a source who has seen a full version of the report, in which those statistics were included, put the total at 21,000

GAO investigators arriving at one point of entry found no border agents in the inspection booth, while at other locations, agents didn't ask for travel documents

As a result of its own earlier investigations, Customs and Border Protection issued new policies and procedures to tighten security at ports of entry, but, months later, GAO inspectors found that many of the same weaknesses persisted.

The National Treasury Employees Union, which represents 17,600 Customs and Border Protection officers manning ports of entry, said the agency is understaffed and poorly managed and officers are overworked and not adequately trained.

400 million people enter the U.S. through legal checkpoints every year

CBP needs thousands more front-line employees, not just to do the job the nation has a right to expect but to provide enough manpower to staff ports of entry

Tags: cbp, homeland security, border patrol, understaff, terrorist, criminal, drug traffic

Passenger stuck in plane-computer failure

Mon, 13 Aug 2007 04:29:11 GMT

clipped by: grammydjb1

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- Weary international passengers were stuck at Los Angeles International Airport for several hours, after a computer failure prevented customs officials from screening arrivals.

More than 20,000 international passengers, both Americans and foreigners, sat in four airport terminals and in 60 planes starting about 2 p.m. on Saturday, when the computer system broke down, said Los Angeles World Airports spokesman Paul Haney.

A major switch in the system, which contains names of arriving passengers and law enforcement data about them, including arrest warrants, had failed and had to be replaced, said Mike Fleming, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman.

"That system allows our officers to make decisions on who we can allow to enter the United States," Fleming said. "You just don't know by looking at them."

Tags: news

Employment Trends | Mission Critical Jobs Increase

Mon, 09 Jul 2007 21:18:12 GMT

clipped by: trendagitator
clipper's remarks: Employment trends continue to underscore the importance of knowledge workers and skilled resources in an ever-changing global economy. As our world becomes more borderless thru trade, jobs increase in key skilled categories (like security and law enforcement posts, including new border patrol agents, customs officers, immigration agents, food inspectors, criminal investigators and airport screeners) that protect national security. Trend Agitator is following these employment shifts as part of an ongoing focus on consumer trends and market strategy. How can your business adapt to these critical job changes? Let's talk!

Clip Source: www.forbes.com

Within the next two years, the U.S. government will be desperate for workers in what it calls "mission critical" jobs.

The Partnership for Public Service report projects government-wide hiring needs through 2009, which are expected to be driven by retiring federal workers and increased homeland security. The information was based on a survey of 34 federal agencies representing nearly 99% of the federal workforce.

Tags: employment, trends, jobs, trend agitator

Interesting

Thu, 24 May 2007 18:35:48 GMT

clipped by: bgiltner

Clip Source: www.azstarnet.com

Homeland Security raids patrol ranks

PHOENIX — The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is urging Border Patrol officers to agree to go to Iraq, even as the agency is trying to hire more people to guard this country.

Russ Knocke, press aide to Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff, confirmed Wednesday that the agency has sent personnel to Iraq for several years. He said they have been both Border Patrol and Customs and Border Protection officers, who have been urged to volunteer for the assignment.

Capitol Media Services ©

By Howard Fischer

Tags: iraq

Mexican Nabbed With 960 Pounds of Marijuana at Border

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:29:50 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

Some 960 pounds of marijuana was found hidden inside concrete pillars in the back of a tractor-trailer at the Mariposa Port of Entry in Nogales, authorities said.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers said they pulled the truck over Wednesday afternoon for secondary inspection due to the nervous behavior of the 32-year-old Mexican driver and suspicions about the cargo's destination in Colorado.

They pulled out one of the pillars, drilled a hole in it and found a bundle of marijuana. They unloaded 18 crates, 13 of which had concrete pillars.

Click here for FOXNews.com's Immigration Center.

In all, officers found 51 bundles of marijuana inside the pillar sections. The bundles were surrounded by dirt inside the pillars to mask the odor, authorities said.

The unidentified driver was arrested and turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which will take over the investigation.

Tags: law

mkl

Sun, 25 Feb 2007 18:57:13 GMT

clipped by: donnydonny

Clip Source: www.washingtonpost.com

But Lieberman said "personnel management has been troubled at TSA" and concluded that "it is time to give TSA screeners parity with other security officers within TSA and DHS in terms of their employment rights and protections."

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), a committee member, spoke against Lieberman's amendment. He said there have not been sufficient hearings on unionization of TSA workers, that the 9/11 Commission Report did not recommend it, and that allowing unions at the TSA would strip the agency of its ability to quickly deploy employees to respond to terrorist threats.

But AFGE had lobbied senators before the vote, contending that current law permits agencies to take whatever personnel actions they deem necessary to respond to emergencies. The union stressed that other law enforcement bureaus in Homeland Security, such as Border Patrol and Customs and Border Protection, permit their employees to be represented by unions.

Tags: 9/11, senate tsa unions

sniper my ass

Tue, 16 Jan 2007 02:52:46 GMT

clipped by: groovy

Clip Source: www.canada.com

U.S. border guard testifies that accused murderer was carrying small arsenal

FREDERICTON (CP) - A U.S. border official says Gregory Despres, the man on trial for the slaying of an elderly New Brunswick couple, could not be denied entry to the United States even though he had an arsenal of weapons with him.

Tim Donnell, a director of customs and border security at the Calais, Maine, border crossing told court he saw Despres as he approached the crossing on the morning of April 25, 2005. Donnell says he could see the handle of what turned out to be a sword sticking out of his backpack.

Customs officers also found Despres was carrying a knife, pepper spray, a chainsaw, brass knuckles and a small axe.

Still, Donnell says Despres could not be detained because he had a legitimate U.S. passport.

Despres, 24, of Minto, N.B., is charged with the murders of his neighbours, Fred Fulton, 74, and his 70-year-old wife Verna Decarie.

Despres was arrested in Massachusetts the day the bodies were found.

Donnell said several customs officers in Calais dealt with Despres as they confiscated the weapons and checked his documentation.

He said Despres identified himself as a marine sniper and appeared high on drugs.

Tags: sniper, marine, murder

Child smuggling rises over holidays

Thu, 07 Dec 2006 07:14:15 GMT

clipped by: milytivers

Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

Immigration officials in Texas say the annual holiday surge in children crossing the border illegally is on.

Illegal immigrants working in the United States sometimes arrange for friends, relatives or professional smugglers to sneak their youngsters into this country.

Three Houston residents were arrested last week at the Hidalgo international bridge for posing as the mother and grandparents of a 2-year-old Mexican boy. The boy was groggy from an apparent dose of a pain-relieving syrup, administered to keep him quiet as they went through customs.

Children who are caught on the bridges are sent back to shelters on the Mexican side to wait for family members to claim them. Those caught on the U.S. side, such as Douglas and his sisters, are usually sent to American shelters, and after a lot of red tape, many are ultimately released to their families in this country, even though the parents are illegal immigrants.

In some cases, depending on the federal agency or the particular officer involved, the illegal-immigrant parents can be taken into custody when they show up to claim their child, and the whole family can then be deported.

As for entrusting children to professional smugglers, “if they’re young girls they could be raped. Little boys can be sold to other families,” said Nina Pruneda of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “They could be kidnapped, held for more money. Some actually make it, end up with their families, everything’s happy. Others don’t.”

24 attempts since Oct. 1
At the Hidalgo port alone, customs officers have stopped 24 child-smuggling attempts since the 2007 fiscal year began Oct. 1, Higgerson said. Customs spokesman Rick Pauza said Laredo’s two bridges saw 218 child smuggling attempts during fiscal year 2006, many of them during the holidays, though he did not have a month-by-month breakdown.

Tags: children, kids, immigration, immigrant, smuggle, illegal immigration, border