Officials say they had 1,300 bullets
By Sandra Dibble
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
May 3, 2005
TIJUANA – Two U.S. Border Patrol agents were behind bars yesterday after driving into Mexico with nearly 1,300 bullets, authorities said.
German Verdugo and David Allen Navarro, both assigned to the El Centro sector, were arrested late Friday after crossing into Mexicali, U.S. and Mexican authorities said.
They are being held at the Mexicali prison, and face federal ammunitions charges. The pair drove south in a lane marked for vehicles with no customs declarations, but their 2004 Lincoln Navigator was pulled aside for random inspection, according to a statement from the Mexican Attorney General's Office, or PGR.
In the back seat of the SUV, the inspectors found a box containing 1,286 .40-caliber hollow-point bullets, according to the PGR. The inspectors also found 10 .223-caliber Winchester rifle bullets, the statement said.
The agents "were not on U.S. government business when they were crossing into Mexico," said Liza Davis, spokeswoman at the U.S. Consulate in Tijuana. They were off-duty and driving a private vehicle, she said.
Mexico has strict weapons and ammunitions laws, and those detected bringing firearms and bullets into the country face stiff punishment.
Ignorance of the law is rarely excused. In 1999, a U.S. Marine from Camp Pendleton who inadvertently drove into Mexico with a handgun and a disassembled semi-automatic assault rifle was released after two weeks once the Mexican prosecutors petitioned a federal judge to drop charges following an outcry from U.S. officials.
According to the PGR, the Border Patrol agents were unable to show permits to import the ammunition, restricted for use by the Mexican military.
A Border Patrol spokesman said the agency assigns its agents .40-caliber hollow-point bullets, but could not confirm that the agency uses the .223-caliber bullets.
Miguel Hernandez, a spokesman for the El Centro sector, could not say why the two were crossing, nor why they were in possession of the ammunition. "The investigation is still pending," Hernandez said.
By Sandra Dibble
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
May 3, 2005
TIJUANA – Two U.S. Border Patrol agents were behind bars yesterday after driving into Mexico with nearly 1,300 bullets, authorities said.
German Verdugo and David Allen Navarro, both assigned to the El Centro sector, were arrested late Friday after crossing into Mexicali, U.S. and Mexican authorities said.
They are being held at the Mexicali prison, and face federal ammunitions charges. The pair drove south in a lane marked for vehicles with no customs declarations, but their 2004 Lincoln Navigator was pulled aside for random inspection, according to a statement from the Mexican Attorney General's Office, or PGR.
In the back seat of the SUV, the inspectors found a box containing 1,286 .40-caliber hollow-point bullets, according to the PGR. The inspectors also found 10 .223-caliber Winchester rifle bullets, the statement said.
The agents "were not on U.S. government business when they were crossing into Mexico," said Liza Davis, spokeswoman at the U.S. Consulate in Tijuana. They were off-duty and driving a private vehicle, she said.
Mexico has strict weapons and ammunitions laws, and those detected bringing firearms and bullets into the country face stiff punishment.
Ignorance of the law is rarely excused. In 1999, a U.S. Marine from Camp Pendleton who inadvertently drove into Mexico with a handgun and a disassembled semi-automatic assault rifle was released after two weeks once the Mexican prosecutors petitioned a federal judge to drop charges following an outcry from U.S. officials.
According to the PGR, the Border Patrol agents were unable to show permits to import the ammunition, restricted for use by the Mexican military.
A Border Patrol spokesman said the agency assigns its agents .40-caliber hollow-point bullets, but could not confirm that the agency uses the .223-caliber bullets.
Miguel Hernandez, a spokesman for the El Centro sector, could not say why the two were crossing, nor why they were in possession of the ammunition. "The investigation is still pending," Hernandez said.
But that's a story for another time.
