Border Patrol encounters Mexican soldiers: Heavily armed foreign troopers on U.S. turf near Tecate

WorldNetDaily.com ^ | Saturday, March 16, 2002 | By Jon Dougherty

[JohnHuang2]

A U.S. Border Patrol officer has encountered four heavily armed Mexican army soldiers on the U.S. side of the border near San Diego.

The soldiers, armed with three submachine guns and one M-16 rifle, crossed the border near Tecate, Mexico, while on a counter-drug mission, Border Patrol spokesman James Jacques said. They were all dressed in camouflage fatigues, said officials.

A Border Patrol agent, who was not identified in the SanDeigoChannel.com report, said he was following footsteps left by the Mexican patrol. When he encountered them, one of the Mexican soldiers had his sidearm unholstered.

The agent then unholstered his sidearm and identified himself. He told superiors the Mexican troopers then realized they were inside the U.S. and cooperated with the Border Patrol agent, who took them to a nearby Border Patrol station.

Their identities were verified by the Mexican consulate and other U.S. officials before they were returned to Mexico via the San Ysidro Port of Entry. The report did not say whether their weapons were confiscated.

"This could easily have escalated into a real tragedy," Jacques told reporters. "Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed."

The Border Patrol's Washington, D.C., headquarters did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment.

The March 10 incident signals a growing trend of Mexican military forces crossing into the United States.

In March 2000, WorldNetDaily reported that a group of Mexican soldiers fired on Border Patrol officers.

On March 14, 2000, "two Mexican army Humvees carrying about 16 armed soldiers drove across the international boundary and into the United States near Santa Teresa, New Mexico," said a statement issued at the time by the National Border Patrol Council, a union representing about 8,300 "non-supervisory" Border Patrol personnel.

There the vehicles pursued a Border Patrol vehicle, which was "outfitted with decals and emergency lights (that were activated for much of the pursuit) over a mile into the United States," the union said.

The lead Mexican army vehicle, said the council, contained nine soldiers "armed with seven automatic assault rifles, one submachine gun and two .45 caliber pistols," and was eventually apprehended by other Border Patrol units.

The second Mexican army Humvee, however, "pursued a Border Patrol agent on horseback and fired a shot at him. The soldiers then disembarked their vehicle, fired upon one more Border Patrol agent and chased another agent before fleeing [back] to Mexico in their vehicle."

Then, in November, two border patrolmen who had just disembarked from a "clearly marked Border Patrol helicopter" immediately came under fire from a 10-man unit of what appeared to be soldiers with the Mexican army, according to L. Keith Weeks, vice president of the National Border Patrol Union Local 1613 in San Diego, Calif.

The second incident reportedly occurred Oct. 24 in Copper Canyon, about eight miles east of the Otay Mesa Port of Entry.

About eight shots were fired, Weeks said. "Once other Border Patrol agents neared the scene, the soldiers retreated to Mexico and drove off in a minivan," he added.

News of the incursion comes as President Bush earlier this week convinced the House leadership to attach an amnesty bill to a series of other non-controversial bills that usually don't require much debate. The measure was passed.

Critics of Bush's bill say the granting of amnesty to millions of illegals rewards illegal behavior, worsens domestic security and demoralizes the Border Patrol and other law enforcement agencies charged with enforcing immigration laws.

On Wednesday, Bush signed into law the "Family Sponsor Immigration Act of 2002," which, the White House said, "allows an alternative family member to sign the necessary affidavit of support for an alien in the event of the death of the relative who initially filed a petition for permanent resident status for the alien."

[Tancredo Fan]

Thay're not living the American dream, they are stealing it. If they were such hard workers then why aren't they working to fix their own countries rather than sneaking into ours?

[KirkandBurke]

And, at the core level, the President does believe that you can have safe transportation on our roads, and that's a priority for the President and his budget reflects additional money to hire safety inspectors. And you can do so in a way that is not unfair to one of our major trading partners and to our good neighbor to the south, Mexico.

Ari Fleischer, for the President, George W. Bush

Yeah, "our good neighbor to the south."

[nicmarlo]

thoughtful post there, crumb......I don't blame anyone more than the INS for failing to secure our borders and keep our country safe from undesirables (i.e. the Mohammed Otta types). As far as Bush's motives.......I can't understand why he's behind the laxity in enforcing existing domestic laws with respect to illegals.....and why he isn't doing more to enforce our borders. Our Border Patrol appears to have great difficulty ..... and these incidents with the Mexican soldiers make it only that much more difficult.

[Don Myers]

"If they were such hard workers then why aren't they working to fix their own countries rather than sneaking into ours?"

It is easier to go where conditions are better, and turn the new home into a replica of the old home.

[cake_crumb]

"That is why nations have quotas."

Quotas are a great idea.

[NoControllingLegalAuthority]

A hard-working criminal is still a criminal. If my American dream involves robbing banks, I go to jail. An immigrant's dream of coming to American should be fulfilled by OBEYING U.S.IMMIGRATION LAW.

I obey the law. Do you? We are American citizens. Why do we obey the law when foreign trespassers are allowed to break it?

I will repeat what I said earlier: No foreigner is entitled to enter the United States. That has been the position of our government for a very long, long time until just the last ten years.

When you say I am smearing these people, I am in very distinguished company. Some of the greatest presidents in our history were the toughest on immigration enforcement. Dwight Eisenhower, five-star general and hero of our WWII victory in Europe, was on the same page as me. He ordered a round-up and threw the lawbreakers out. Within the first year 1954-55, 1.3 million illegal aliens had left. Within three years, 3 million had left.

Here's a project for you. Identify for me a nation in history that didn't protect its borders and remained strong, free and independent.

[Dick Bachert]

ALAMO? ALAMO?? YOU DON'T GOT NO STINKIN' ALAMO!

At the time of his approach to Red China, Richard Nixon (a REPUBLICAN for those of you from Rio Linda) was approached by an internationalist businessman who was literally salivating over the prospect of access to the BILLIONS of potential Chinese slave laborers and “customers” (although this rocket scientist had apparently not yet concluded that the Chinese people would be hard pressed to buy his stuff without MONEY!!!!).

This businessman was concerned that Nixon had been SAYING that he was cooling to the idea of an opening to Red China to quell the uprising within the then very much more America-First rank and file Republican Party.

As reported years later, Nixon told the businessman
“DON’T LISTEN TO WHAT WE SAY: WATCH WHAT WE DO!”

It is my strong memory of THAT event which prompts me to post this graphic!

AS YOU READ THIS, IT APPEARS THAT BUSH, DASCHLE AND OTHERS ARE WELL DOWN THE ROAD TO USING THIS PAGE FROM THE NIXON PLAYBOOK!

Look, America – the IDEA not the PLACE – can only continue to exist if we heed the advice of the founding fathers (paraphrased here in the current vernacular for residents of Rio Linda), to wit:
“The Founding Fathers have determined that failure to WATCH politicians – ALL POLITICIANS (even those you may worship!) – is dangerous to the security of this nation and to the freedoms we paid such a heavy price to TRY to leave you and your children.” “Government is not reason. Government is not eloquence. It is FORCE. And, like fire, it is a DANGEROUS SERVANT AND A FEARSOME MASTER.”

That from that notorious tinfoil hat wearing, radical wing-nut, George Washington.

[Kerensky]

I keep trying to find the following at my neighborhood
leftist book store, but they just shrug and tell me
that "it's out of print".

[nicmarlo]

I work damn hard for my money, and I pay enough in taxes as is. And much of those tax dollars goes to support these programs.

This is a great problem and will now become greater, thanks to Congress. Tom Tancredo said the amnesty bill passed by 1 vote.

[Don Myers]

"and these incidents with the Mexican soldiers make it only that much more difficult."

The border patrols were shot at and had to flee? Where was the backup? If there were only nine Mexican soldiers, the Border Patrol couldn't handle the situation? Nine Mexican soldiers is like the Three Stooges on parade. And the Border Patrol couldn't handle them? This must be a case of political correctness hiring in the Border Patrol.

[nicmarlo]

I thought that odd, too....however, I bet our Border Patrol has been told "do not shoot at Mexican soldiers or you will lose your jobs." (Klinton law, of course).

[Don Myers]

"That from that notorious tinfoil hat wearing, radical wing-nut, George Washington. "

There are many people in this Nation and on this board who think that George Washington and the other Founding Fathers were hard-core radical wierdos. Because if we say the same thing today that they said, we are branded as tin-foil wearing wierdos. I know that Klinton said the Founding Fathers were too radical.

[Don Myers]

"I bet our Border Patrol has been told "do not shoot at Mexican soldiers or you will lose your jobs." (Klinton law, of course)."

I think that if someone started shooting at me, I would say the heck with orders. But about orders, it sounds as though a payoff from Mexican drug runners had its influence if such orders have been issued.

[INSENSITIVE GUY]

HEY MEXICO,HOW BOUT ANOTHER GO AT THE ALAMO?

[cake_crumb]

"I can't understand why he's behind the laxity in enforcing existing domestic laws with respect to illegals.....and why he isn't doing more to enforce our borders."

That's a problem which has been going on for decades. Rather than tightening up on our borders, vote hungry, local politicians have simply passed more and more expensive, unecessary, unsuccessful, "feel good" legislation like free hospital care for illegals, when the rest of us have to pay for it, and driver's lisences for illegals to "make our highways safer". Yeah right. Give a lisence to an unqualified driver who doesn't even know our traffic laws...THAT'll help. Do to feel good legislation over the years, illegals have the right to our enter our public schools, which then must find funding to (badly) compensate for language barriers and shortcomings in each illegal student's PREVIOUS schooling (if any)...not to mention the public also pays for all those free lunches.

There's not a whole heckuvalot the president can do at any one time. Changes to established institutions, can only be made ONE step at a time.

What we need to do is formulate SOLUTIONS, be consistant, and keep after our local, state and federal legislators to impliment the SOLUTION, rather than PC, feel-good legislation.

[Dane]

You all are going to beleive what you want to beleive, but I am sorry I don't follow your doom and gloom scenarios about immigrants.

You all can have your flagellation party, banter around conspiracy theories, and thump your chests, but I am going to trust my President to do the right thing and no the right thing is not your alls xenophobic wet dream of going through neighborhoods and rounding up people who you consider "undesrireable" and kicking them back across the border.

[Sabertooth]

FITZ: It amazes me that it takes two hours after they find what appears to be a bomb --and in fact is part of a bomb and the INS still doesn't close the border, it took a local police department to do it. Homeland security amounts to strip searching Americans at airports but not we can't close or protect the borders.

Dane: And it amazes me that you see a "conspiracy" everywhere...

You put the word "conspiracy" in quotes, Dane... yet it doesn't appear anywhere in FITZ's post.

You know what arguing against words you put in someone else's mouth is, don't you?

Yep. Straw man.

Amazing, Dane... Again.

[Don Myers]

"but I am going to trust my President to do the right thing and no the right thing is not your alls xenophobic wet dream of going through neighborhoods and rounding up people who you consider "undesrireable" and kicking them back across the border."

That is ok. The lemmings will meet at 2 this afternoon at the parking lot of the White House. There will be a short time for socializing and refreshments. Upon the sound of the whistle, the group will begin its run toward the cliff overlooking the ocean.

[willyone]

The long and short of it is that Mexico no longer considers the US a soverign nation. You cannot blame them for this as our elected leaders have given them this attitude by their own inaction in stopping illegel immigration and smuggling. America has become the human turd depository of the third world. And Bush is going to make it much worse. In twenty years we will have the same situation that is now going on in Israel and the west bank. "Welcome to McDonalds will that be one hand grenade or two"?

[Sabertooth]

Lonesome in Massachussets :"Sounds like a simple navigation error, I wouldn't make too much of it"

cake_crumb: Sounds like one to me, too.

Sounds like you're both North of the Mason-Dixon and East of the Mississippi.

This was most likely part of a smuggling operation. Mexcican police and the Mexican Army are notoriously corrupt, and are well-paid by gangsters and drug lords South of the border.

What do you suppose came across while our undermanned INS was dealing with these four Mexican Army men?