CLINT, Texas – A total of four suspected smugglers and $209,120 in marijuana were intercepted by Border Patrol Agents in what proved to be the start of a busy weekend for El Paso Sector.
Last Friday, while performing surveillance duties, Agents assigned to the Clint Border Patrol Station agents observed four individuals carrying large cellophane-wrapped bundles attempting to cross an agricultural field toward Texas Highway 20. Immediately upon seeing the Border Patrol vehicles converging on the field, the four subjects discarded their bundles into a drainage ditch. One of the individuals attempted to conceal himself in the desert brush, while the other three sprinted south back toward Mexico. After a brief foot chase, agents apprehended all three subjects. The fourth subject who was attempting to conceal himself in a drainage canal near the large bundles, was apprehended with the assistance of a K9 unit. It was discovered that the four bundles contained a total of 261.4 pounds of marijuana, valued at $209,120. The individuals were identified as 23-year-old Raul Antonio Alvarado-Lozano from Mexico, 20-year-old Christian Margarito Banderas-Peralta from Mexico, and 18-year-old Alexis Arturo Enriquez-Moreno also from Mexico. Record checks revealed that the fourth subject was a juvenile, and was voluntarily returned back to Mexico. The remaining three subjects and the illegal drugs were taken into custody by DEA and are pending prosecution.
Vehicle used for smuggling in the El Paso Sector
Later that evening in Santa Teresa-New Mexico, 41-year-old Arturo Ocon-Garcia, of Mexico, was arrested immediately after entering the country illegally. Border Patrol Agents from the Santa Teresa Horse Patrol Unit came across footprints headed north from the Mexico/U.S. International boundary. They tracked the foot-sign about a mile north until they encountered five subjects from Mexico. Among the group was Ocon-Garcia, a convicted criminal sex-offender with a criminal record. It was later revealed that that he was previously convicted for “Aggravated Criminal Sexual Assault/Aggravated Sexual Abuse”, in Chicago, Illinois. Ocon-Garcia will be held pending criminal and removal proceedings.
Friday night, a concerned citizen called and notified authorities that there were two people who were seen walking through the desert from the U.S./Mexico border. U.S. Border Patrol Agents were dispatched to their last known location, while additional Agents began using night-vision technology to scan the area. The responding Border Patrol Agents arrested two subjects in the desert who had crossed the U.S./Mexico border illegally. As Agents were effecting the arrest, a 2008 Suzuki sedan with two people drove up to the location. Due to the time of day and the location that the Suzuki stopped, it was suspected the driver was there to pick up the two men who had illegally crossed into the country. As Agents confirmed this suspicion, they placed the men under arrest. The passenger stated that he had a handgun in the car. Agents searched the vehicle and located a 9-mm handgun with a 30 round high-capacity magazine, along with more than $2,000 in cash. The passenger, identified as 25-year-old U.S. Citizen Ricardo Rivera, was placed under arrest and is pending prosecution for 8 USC 1324 - Domestic Transporting. The driver was released due to his lack of knowledge about the smuggling scheme. The U.S. Border Patrol seized the handgun, the high capacity magazine, the currency and the vehicle as part of the smuggling scheme.
These incidents demonstrate how vigilance by U.S. Border Patrol Agents and the ability to rapidly respond to areas is combating the furtherance of illicit drugs into our community, while keeping our nation’s borders safe.