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Posted on 08/05/2003 5:47:59 PM PDT by SandRat
For discussion and information.
SIERRA VISTA -- The president of the American Border Patrol said today that his group is accelerating its plans to move its headquarters from an upper middle class neighborhood south of Sierra Vista to a rural ranch.
"It has always been our ultimate goal to move," Glenn Spencer said this morning.
The number of instances the organization's high-tech equipment has been stolen has moved up the relocation by a couple of months, he said.
Because of the loss of a large mobile satellite Internet transmitter, some of the operations for gathering and transmitting information about illegal activities crossing the border are down, Spencer said.
He estimated the organization has lost about $6,000 of high-tech electronic equipment recently through break-ins at the American Border Patrol's headquarters located near the intersection of Equestrian Drive and Yaqui Street.
A break-in at the headquarters complex was reported Friday to the Cochise County Sheriff's Department.
On Saturday, Spencer was arrested on three counts of disorderly conduct involving a weapon, a count of endangerment and a count of criminal damage reportedly done on Friday night.
Except for the criminal damage charge, which is a misdemeanor, all the others are felonies. He was released from jail on Sunday on his own recognizance.
As for the Friday night incident, Spencer said he was responding to some noise outside the headquarters, which also is his home. Spencer said he has recently received death threats and reported them to the FBI.
He said there are people who do not like what the American Border Patrol is doing and it is not fair to have people who live in the area be affected.
As the American Border Patrol's operation continues to grow, it will be better for the headquarters to be located in a more rural area, Spencer said. The American Border Patrol is not affiliated with the U.S. Border Patrol, the federal agency that has the responsibility for protecting the U.S. side of the international boundary.
"The neighbors don't need this," he said of the potential problems they may face because of criminal activities aimed at the organization. "I feel we are a target because of our growing mission."
The growth includes putting out more in-ground sensors to monitor the activity of people smuggling illegal immigrants or drugs and flying more small unmanned aerial vehicles, he said.
Having a rural area for the headquarters, the location of which will be kept secret, will allow the American Border Patrol to increase its security, while doing such things as launching its UAV program, using radio-controlled airplanes, Spencer said.
"We will keep people from knowing where we are," he added.
HERALD/REVIEW senior reporter Bill Hess can be reached at (520) 458-9440 Ext. 115 or by e-mail at bill.hess@svherald.com.
American Border Patrol: Spencer released from jail
and
American Border Patrol's Glenn Spencer arrested on gun charge
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