Border Patrol Operation Leads to Arrest of 1,000+ Illegals in Southern California

Border Patrol Operation Leads to Arrest of 1,000+ Migrants in Southern California

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By Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com

More than 1,000 people accused of illegally crossing into the U.S. have been arrested since mid-October as part of an operation to thwart human smuggling near Dulzura in southern Californian.

More Border Patrol agents and resources were sent to the Otay Mountain area to combat illegal crossings, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

“Smugglers are exploiting the most rugged terrain in the county, and we’re countering with this effort,” said Matthew Dreyer, Border Patrol agent and commander of the new task force.

Because of the treacherous conditions, Border Patrol agents often have to rescue migrants.

“Oftentimes the migrants are not prepared by the smugglers for how difficult the terrain is,” Dreyer said. “Oftentimes they’re left behind when they’re injured, and we’ll have to rescue them.”

http://ticklethewire.com/2017/01/19/...rn-california/

Border Patrol operation near Dulzura leads to more than 1,000 arrests

David Hernandez Contact Reporter

A Border Patrol effort to thwart human smuggling near Dulzura has led to the arrests of more than 1,000 people accusing of crossing into the U.S. illegally since mid-October, authorities said Wednesday.

The initiative reallocated more Border Patrol agents and resources to the Otay Mountain area since Oct. 16.

“Smugglers are exploiting the most rugged terrain in the county, and we’re countering with this effort,” said Matthew Dreyer, Border Patrol agent and commander of the new task force.

The mountain is particularly treacherous because of steep cliffs, loose gravel and tall waterfalls, as well as extreme weather, Dreyer said.

“Oftentimes the migrants are not prepared by the smugglers for how difficult the terrain is,” he said. “Oftentimes they’re left behind when they’re injured, and we’ll have to rescue them.”

As a result, Border Patrol agents are put in danger too, Dreyer said.

The recent effort, dubbed Task Force Otay, ultimately aims to “deny smugglers this area as a place where they can profit off of human beings,” Dreyer said.

The arrests make up nearly 10 percent of the total number of apprehensions by the Border Patrol throughout the county since October. Of those arrested in Otay Mountain, 39 face federal charges to human smuggling.

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/...118-story.html

At Least 1K Migrants Busted on One Mountain in 3-Month Period

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by BOB PRICE 19 Jan 2017 Otay Mountain, CA 5

More than 1,000 migrants were arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents during a 3-month operation targeting Otay Mountain in southern California.

Border Patrol agents from the San Diego Sector were assigned to Task Force Otay in mid-October to focus on multiple smuggling organizations using the mountain as a gateway into the U.S. The Otay Mountain area is well known for its treacherous terrain and rampant bandit activity, information received by Breitbart Texas from Border Patrol officials revealed.

The area made national news in March 2016 when Efrain Delgado-Rosales, 35, was sentenced to five years in prison after being caught smuggling a group of four migrants on Otay Mountain. It was his 24th arrest for human smuggling, Breitbart News reported.

The primary objective of the operation was to make a dramatic impact on the smuggling activities of multiple criminal organizations that seek to take advantage of the terrain to carry out their operations.

“Multiple smuggling organizations are responsible for threatening our nation’s security through persistent human smuggling on Otay Mountain,” Chief Patrol Agent Richard A. Barlow said at the beginning of the operation. “We will flex our enforcement posture toward these exploited areas to weaken and ultimately eliminate these criminal enterprises.”

Illegal immigration is not the only problem in the Otay Mountain region. Border Patrol officials report that the popular recreational area is also well-known for Mexican bandit operations, kidnappings, extortion, and rapes “committed upon migrants by perpetrators in Mexico.”

The operation was a success.
During the operation that began on October 16, agents arrested more than 1,000 migrants for entering the U.S. illegally on Otay Mountain.

The operation was a bi-national effort where Border Patrol officials worked in conjunction with Mexican Federal Police (Policia Federal) to leverage the enforcement and proprietorial efforts on both sides of the border.

In addition to the arrest of the over 1,000 border crossers, agents also arrested 39 on charges of criminal smuggling or other immigration violations.

“Through Task Force Otay, the Border Patrol will maintain a zero tolerance approach to human smuggling on Otay Mountain,” Patrol Agent in Charge of the Chula Vista Border Patrol Station Daniel Parks said in a written statement. “The success of this strategy is dependent on our partnerships with U.S. prosecutors and Mexican Federal Police.”

http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2017/...-month-period/