Posted on 02/24/2004 8:24:54 PM PST by txdoda
Feb 24, 2004
One or more shooters remained on the loose in Mexico Monday after firing on Border Patrol agents who had intercepted a load of illegal aliens being ferried across the Colorado River on an inflatable raft.
Multiple gunshots rang out and bullets whizzed over agents' heads as they were subduing the smuggler of the aliens at the river's edge near County 7th Street at 6:45 a.m., the patrol said. The gunfire was followed by one or more shots fired from an undetermined location on the U.S. side of the river.
No one was injured in the shooting, but agents reported that the shots fired from Mexico passed close overhead.
The gunfire prompted the Border Patrol to call in additional agents and aircraft to mount a search, which led to the arrests of dozens of illegal aliens hiding in brush along the river. Agents also seized three large rubber rafts that were being used to ferry the aliens across the river.
The patrol reported the incident to municipal police in Los Algodones, Baja, Calif., who conducted a sweep of the Mexican side of the river without turning up any suspects. Contacted later Monday afternoon, police in Algodones said they still had no one in custody in the shooting.
That shooting and an accident made for an eventful morning for Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents.
In the accident, two illegal aliens suffered minor injuries when the van in which they were riding skidded on a muddy shoulder alongside Avenue F at about 2:10 a.m. and turned over, Border Patrol spokesman Mike McGlasson said. They and two other aliens were taken into custody.
The shooting came after agents patrolling the river near County 7th Street saw one of the rafts carrying a load of aliens across the Colorado from Algodones. Agents were waiting for the raft as it approached the U.S. shore, and the smuggler jumped out of the craft and tried to flee but was chased down.
"He tried to fight with the agents and they subdued him and handcuffed him," McGlasson said. "At that point, they heard some yelling, some obscenities being shouted at them, followed by the gunfire. There was more than one shot, (but) I'm not sure how many."
The patrol was still investigating Monday afternoon who fired two or more shots from the U.S. side. McGlasson said it was not an agent.
"They (agents) couldn't find any expired cartridges or weapons," McGlasson said. "Basically in that area, it's very difficult to look for a weapon," owing to the heavy shoreline brush where a gun could be easily concealed.
The Border Patrol called in additional agents plus a patrol helicopter and fixed-winged aircraft to assist the agents who had been pinned by the shooting, McGlasson said.
Agents found and detained 36 aliens hiding in various brushy areas along the U.S. bank. The smugger had ferried one load of aliens across the river before being arrested, McGlasson said.
A second smuggler was identified among the group of 36, McGlasson said, and he and the first smuggler will face prosecution.
Overnight rains created muddy conditions that led to the rollover, McGlasson said. The van had picked up six to eight aliens near County 19th Street and U.S. Highway 95, and then had turned north on Avenue F when the emergency lights on a pursuing Border Patrol vehicle signaled it to stop, he said.
The van apparently lost control when it pulled onto the muddy shoulder while still traveling at a high rate of speed, as if dropping off the passengers so they could flee on foot, he said.
The drug cartels have a pretty strong foothold on the USA side now --- they've got their guys over here --- the border patrol could easily be outnumbered and be shot at from all sides. Mexico has taken over pretty vast regions along the border.
Good idea, will do!
Sounds like the latest up and coming "natural conservative" think tank has formed..
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