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| Home Front: WoT |
| Bandits increase border violence |
| 2006-01-05 |
| EFL. (really) Bandits armed with guns easily purchased in the United States are making the border more dangerous for illegal immigrants, law enforcement agents and those who live, work or visit along the border. Reports of attacks began coming across Mitch Ellis' desk a year ago when he became manager of Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, a rugged expanse of mesquite- and prickly pear-studded desert about 60 miles southwest of Tucson along the Arizona-Mexico border. Just a couple of paragraphs long, they document stories of women raped by masked gunmen and men wounded or killed trying to protect the little money they had. The crimes have become common here since the U.S. crackdown on urban areas along the border pushed illegal immigrants, and drew the bandits, or bajadores, who prey on them, into Arizona's deserts. The bandits add another layer of criminal activity to the drug and human smuggling along the border. It's always America's fault. Five people were shot in bandit-related attacks on or near the refuge during November alone. Deputy Dawn Barkman, a spokeswoman for the Pima County Sheriff's Department, which investigates many of the incidents, called the bandit attacks an "epidemic." The department recorded 39 incidents - accounting for hundreds of individual victims - in 2005, up from 31 in 2004. But the numbers barely scratch the surface, said sheriff's Sgt. Gary Anderson, who is in charge of investigating assaults for the department. "The victims tell us that they've already been assaulted two or three times before the last incident," he said. Most attacks aren't reported, and illegal immigrants continue on their way. Long-time ranger and National Guard member Todd Kyle takes no risks. Each morning at dawn, he pulls on the same bulletproof vest that protected him during his tour of duty in Iraq. He returned home early last year. He brought back an extra vest for visitors who accompany him on patrols. "I won't go out there without one, so why should I let someone else?" he asked. Adam Blankenbaker hunts white-tailed deer and javelina on the refuge with his bow and arrow several times a year. He started carrying a 9 mm handgun last year after he found an illegal immigrant trying to steal his truck. It's against Game & Fish regulations to carry a gun during archery hunts, but it's become common among hunters. They have little choice, he said. "If I walk around a corner down in a wash and next thing you know there's 10 guys there with assault weapons and I've got my bow and arrow," he said, "my bow's not going to do me any good." A year ago, the refuge began distributing fliers warning its estimated 35,000 annual visitors to "stay alert" for illegal activity, high-speed chases, and large, potentially armed groups of illegal immigrants or drug smugglers. Of the five people shot in November, two died. Four were illegal immigrants. One was a bandit killed in a shootout between two gangs trying to rob the same group To evade capture, bandits typically operate within a few miles of either side of the border. If the bandits are in Arizona and American law enforcement officers show up, they dash across the barbed-wire fence into Mexico, said Enrique Enriquez Palafox, Nogales coordinator of Grupos Beta, Mexico's official immigrant aid organization. If they're south of the border and Mexican authorities appear, they dart into the United States, he said. A wall would make that a lot harder. Or, since Mexican Army units cross the border to help criminals against BP units, why not have our BP chase them across? Enriquez came across a gang holding up a large group while patrolling the border west of Nogales. They took off as soon as they saw his bright orange Grupos Beta uniform but he managed to nab one just feet from escaping into the United States. "As soon as I grabbed his leg, his friends started shooting at me," said Enriquez, as he leaned over to undo the laces of his boot. He rolled up his pant leg to reveal an 18-inch scar that runs the length of his right calf. "I took five bullets," he said. It took him a year to recover. Some Mexicans are as brave and believe in duty as much as any American. It often seems the smugglers are in cahoots with bandits. "They never touch the smugglers," said Francisco Garcia, who runs an immigrant shelter in Altar, "even though they carry the most money." Or it could be that the bandits simply leave the smugglers alone. The smugglers bring the bandits business, he said, "and you don't kill the goose that lays the golden egg." |
| Posted by:Jackal |
| #1 the crimes are Mexican upon Mexican. Before the San Diego Sector fence was built it was documented that the VAST majority was Mexican predatation, very often with police and army personnel getting a little mordida or rape |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-01-05 21:09 |