Thread: Border town workers say US agents shot them with air guns

http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/related/156487.php

-Border town workers say U.S. agents shot them with air guns

The Associated Press
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 11.17.2006
advertisementYUMA, Ariz. - The mayor of San Luis Rio Colorado, Mexico said U.S. Border Patrol agents shot two city workers with pepper ball guns early Wednesday.
Mayor Ruben Espino condemned what he termed "aggressive actions of elements of the Border Patrol" and complained about the incident to Gov. Janet Napolitano, who was in Mexico with him for a meeting Thursday. Espino said in a statement he will push for the agents involved to be disciplined.
Border Patrol spokesman Lloyd Easterling said the agency is investigating.
"As we should, we take all of these complaints seriously," Easterling said. "We're trying to figure out details and find out what's going on."
The two city workers were on a trash detail near the U.S.-Mexico border crossing about 12:25 a.m. Wednesday when two agents asked them to identify themselves even though they were on the Mexican side of the border fence, according to the La Prensa newspaper in San Luis Rio Colorado.
The city identified the two workers as Francisco Estrada Estrada and Gabriel Ramirez Garcia, who were in city uniform and using vehicles with a city logo. A city press release said a female Border Patrol agent continued to fire pepper ball rounds at the two workers even after a Mexican police unit arrived on the scene.
La Prensa published photos of Estrada with his shirt raised and welts on his back. He said he was hit at least four times.
8 Comments on this story
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I know the issue is supposed to be that US border officials shot at Mexican employees on their side of the border, but for me the troubling part is that they were armed with pepper ball guns rather than lethal firearms, given how dangerous the border has become.

BTW - I wonder if there is any truth to the rumor that the border patrol officers were just providing condiments for the Mexicans' lunch?

crocket said:

BTW - I wonder if there is any truth to the rumor that the border patrol officers were just providing condiments for the Mexicans' lunch?

No, haven't heard that rumor.