Thread: Cocopahs remove cover for illegal activity

Cocopahs remove cover for illegal activity

BY BLAKE SCHMIDT, SUN STAFF WRITER
Jan 10, 2006, 9:03 pm

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Tracy Register, environmental director for the Cocopah Tribe, stands at the foot of sand berms that the tribe built with bulldozers to block drug smuggling routes across the Colorado River. PHOTO BY TERRY KETRON/THE SUN
The Cocopah Tribe has finished a project to remove a hiding spot for drug smugglers and illegal aliens coming across the border, and to block makeshift bridges that have been used to cross the Colorado River on wheels.

"It was nastier than nasty. It was the nastiest," said Cocopah Environmental Director Tracy Register, referring to the thick brush that had sprout up around native cottonwood and willow trees, creating cover for illegal and "bandit" activity.

On Tuesday, Register peered into what now looked like an open park, after the land was cleared as part of a $50,000 project that brought the Cocopah tribe together with federal, state and local agencies to stem illegal activity at the border.

"If Border Patrol or the sheriff were responding to a call here, it would have been impossible to pursue anyone in the area," Register said.

Border Patrol spokesman Mike Gramley has told the Sun that the area was a haven for "bandit activity." Register said the tribe has dealt with robberies, shootings, drug drops and sexual assaults in the area.

But five days into the project, after having cleared just 12 acres of the property, Register decided the tribe had cleared enough brush in the area.

"We decided (a 12-acre) clearing satisfied the homeland security need," he said.

He decided to use remaining funds instead to clear other brush near the river, and to create 10-foot-tall sand barriers to block makeshift bridges of bags that vehicle smugglers have been using to cross the Colorado River.

"They've been inventive in how they get vehicles across the border and river," Register said, as he looked over the sunken bags just beneath the river's surface. "Interestingly, they used bags of pinto beans, a product from Canada," he said.

Border Patrol agent Paul Skaists, who patrols in the area, said the clearing and barriers will help slow the illegal influx of drugs and people at the border, but it won't stop them.

"Anything helps," he said. "But as soon as we plug up one hole, they'll find another one ... we're not going to completely stop them, but we'll slow them down," Skaists said.

In September, the tribe received $37,500 as part of state emergency funds allocated by Gov. Janet Napolitano to clear 100 acres of land near the border and the Colorado River. The tribe added $12,500 to the project.

Though some local agencies have said they were not aware they were required to match 25 percent of the state-allocated emergency funds, Register said the tribe had no such problems with this project.

The completed project tallied a total of 60 acres of cleared brush and three berms put up to block smuggling bridges on the river.

http://sun.yumasun.com/artman/publish/a ... _21585.php

Good. Anything that can be accomplished to slow them down, expose them, make it easier to catch them...I'm FOR IT.

RR

I wonder what the insane Mexica Movement members have to say about "indigenous" people keeping other "indigenous" people out of the US?