Border Patrol recruiting in Oklahoma


By The Associated Press
1/26/2008 5:54 PM


OKLAHOMA CITY -- The Border Patrol has begun recruiting Oklahomans as it attempts to hire 4,000 new agents this year.

The agency spent $170,000 in Oklahoma advertising last year and recruiters logged 48 calls from Oklahoma between Jan. 13 and Jan. 19, officials said. Nineteen of the callers completed the agency's online registration process while they were on the phone.

Agency spokesman Bill Brooks said efforts to find new agents in the state have been "very successful" so far, although he did not have specific recruiting figures.

"We're real pleased with it," Brooks said.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection needs several thousand new agents to reach the goal of boosting the border security force to 18,000 by October 2009. The push is the result of a 2006 mandate by Congress and President Bush.

Recruiters began targeting Oklahoma and other states in the southwest that are not on the border after realizing those states were an untapped resource, spokeswoman Andrea Zortman said. The agency hired about 2,500 new agents last year.

Oklahomans between 18 and 39 who are interested in a law enforcement career with the Border Patrol can meet with agency recruiters in the coming weeks in Stillwater, Oklahoma City and Tulsa, Brooks said.

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