Thread: Stories from the Border Ft. Huachuca -Guard deployed in 2002

These are two articles that I think are interesting about the problems at Ft. Huachuca, AZ and the role of the military police and National Guard there. They are from 2003, and 2004. Just a little background. The first article had to be dug from the archives of the Sierra Vista Herald.
The National guard has been guarding government assets since 2002, augmented security police personnel in addition to the predator squadron.
I guess I am becoming a little jaded, but when I hear the politicians saying the guard had been on the border for several years, I have to wonder in what capacity. Has the Guard been there to protect government assets or citizens?

Come on folks, we got a total of 55 guardsmen deployed to protect us.


http://www.svherald.com/articles/2003/0 ... t80421.txt

Colonel says higher number of illegals is taxing resourcesBY BILL HESS

Herald/Review

FORT HUACHUCA -- The increasing number of illegal immigrants found on the post is interfering with the fort's regular law enforcement operations, Garrison Commander Col. Lawrence Portouw said Monday.

Frank Amarillas, a spokesman for the U.S. Border Patrol's Tucson Sector, said there has been an increase in the number of illegal immigrants apprehended and drugs confiscated in Cochise County when compared to a year ago. This past weekend, 94 illegal immigrants were apprehended on the fort and turned over to the U.S. Border Patrol, Portouw said. The number of illegal immigrants apprehended on post for the period of nearly the first six months of this fiscal year is more than twice the number taken into custody for the entire 12 months of the previous fiscal year, according to post figures.

To help provide more security because of the increasing illegal immigrant problem, the colonel said the post's military police, which does patrol duty and is the special environmental protection force, is being augmented by members of the Arkansas Army National Guard. The guardsmen are members of 2nd Battery, 2nd Battalion of the 142nd Field Artillery and were sent to the post last year to help with force protection.

Some of the Arkansas National Guard soldiers are policemen who were activated and understand law enforcement, Portouw said.

Except in a few incidents, most of the illegal immigrants avoid the post housing areas and are apprehended in the canyons at Slaughterhouse Wash on the far northern part of the post, he said.

"Some of the coyotes (people smugglers) tell them Sierra Vista is Phoenix," the colonel said. Many of the illegal immigrants are trying to make it to Phoenix, which is about 180 miles northwest of Sierra Vista.

When the illegal immigrants are challenged by soldiers, many do not give any trouble, though a few try to run, Portouw said. They seem to be afraid of soldiers, he added.

The post's fragile environmental sites have been damaged by the trash that illegal immigrants are dumping, the colonel said.

All illegal immigrants apprehended on the fort are turned over to the U.S. Border Patrol, Portouw said, adding the agency responds quickly.

Amarillas said the U.S. Border Patrol also has responded to the post to help look for illegal immigrants or to take into custody those apprehended by fort personnel.

"There is no secret they (illegal immigrants) are coming over the Huachuca Mountains," he said.

From Oct. 1 through Sunday night, 139,265 illegal immigrants have been apprehended in the Tucson Sector, which includes Cochise County. Of that number, 67,432 were apprehended by agents at the Douglas, Naco and Willcox stations, Amarillas said.

In comparison, the numbers for Oct. 1, 2001 to March 23, 2002, were 123,875 for the entire sector and 61,371 by agents at the three county stations, Amarillas added.

Border Patrol agents also confiscated more drugs, Amarillas said. From Oct. 1 through Sunday, 200,000 pounds of marijuana have been confiscated in the sector. For the same period a year ago, the amount was about 180,000 pounds, he added.

For the two stations along the immediate border, Douglas and Naco, the amount of marijuana confiscated went up the most in Douglas, Amarillas said. So far this fiscal year 20,754 pounds of marijuana have been confiscated compared to 10,655 pounds the previous year by Douglas Station agents. For the Naco station, the amounts are 21,543 pounds and 21,010 pounds respectively.

Soldiers spend hours tracking illegals on the fort

By BILL HESS
Sunday, February 6, 2005 12:22 PM MST

Sierra Vista Herald/Review

http://svherald.com/articles/2005/02/06 ... /news1.txt

FORT HUACHUCA - Out of breath, Sgt. David Reilly quickly moved about three miles to intercept a group of illegal immigrants who were using this Southern Arizona Army post early Saturday morning as an avenue into the United States.

"They're using a different trail," a somewhat frustrated Reilly reported over a military radio channel.

Maj. Rhett Weddell, the fort's provost marshal and director of emergency services, sat inside his government vehicle listening to Reilly's updates. Although Reilly whispered his updates, they came across loud on the radio in Weddell's vehicle.

The dark conditions just before midnight made it difficult to move from the hilltop where Reilly, his partner, Sgt. Mark Baughman, and 10 U.S. Border Patrol agents were hidden, to the area being used by illegal immigrants. The cloud cover that blocked the starlight made it even darker.

Moving as quietly as possible and keeping their presence unknown was critical to the operation, Reilly later said while taking a break in the Military Police station after the interception was complete. Even flashlights could not be used for fear of giving away their approach.

Although not many illegal immigrants are detained on the post and turned over to the Border Patrol, the fact that such people use the fort as one of many northbound trails concerns installation officials.

In the past nine months, Reilly said he has detained more than 2,000 illegal immigrants on the fort.

On Friday morning, soldiers tracked another group of 60. Fifty-eight people were eventually apprehended by the Border Patrol off the installation. That group meandered on and off post property.

Garrison Commander Col. Jonathan Hunter has said he wants to put more of an emphasis in controlling the illegal immigrant traffic on the post.

Environmental protection officers like Reilly and Baughman are game wardens for the fort's more than 70,000 acres and keep an eye out for environmental damage, some linked to the movement of illegal immigrants, Weddell said. The section has six soldiers, three on each of the day and "dark" shifts.

Most of the illegal foot traffic occurs during the night operations, he said.

Baughman was looking for signs of illegal traffic when he heard two-way radio talk in Spanish in Huachuca Canyon, Reilly said.

"I sent him to check the road, to brush it," he said.

Brushing a road is to eliminate any signs of any previous foot traffic so the area can be checked later for new footprints - an indication that illegal immigrants may have passed by the area.

Knowing an area was brushed and when gives him and others in the section an indication of when there may have been foot traffic in a place where there should not be any, Reilly said.

As for hearing conversations, the soldier said illegal immigrants use small two-way radios to communicate while moving.

When Baughman called him and told him of what he heard, Reilly went to Reservoir Hill. Just before 7 p.m. Friday, he saw a group of about 50 illegal immigrants through a night scope in Huachuca Canyon, not far from family housing areas on the fort.

He called the Border Patrol for assistance because of the large number of illegal immigrants.

"I don't call them (the Border Patrol) until I'm sure how large the group is and what direction they are traveling," the sergeant said.

A seven-year Army veteran, the 28-year-old Californian said the job is physically challenging. Weddell said soldiers who want to be a member of the special section have to compete and besides being in the best physical condition they have to have common sense and be aggressive.

"They have to be self-starters," he added.

Reilly said walking around in dangerous terrain at night requires a person who is sure-footed.

Tracking of the group consumed almost a regular eight-hour shift. For Reilly, Baughman and the Border Patrol agents, the shift would last much longer.

An eight-hour shift can sometimes double.

On many occasions, Reilly has been called to provide assistance, even through he is technically off duty. The calls are hard on his wife and three children, but they understand his job.

"To me, it's all about the mission. Whatever the mission needs to get done, I'll do," Reilly said.

While the operation was called an interception, it had overtones of a military ambush. A trap was prepared for a hopefully unaware enemy.

When a pair of Border Patrol scope operators passed the word the trap was in the wrong place, Weddell said it is the ability of his soldiers and the agents to change emphasis and quickly get to an area to complete the operation.

It is an example of why the joint operations between the military and the federal agency are successful, Weddell said.

The rapid redeployment still surprised the illegal immigrants, even though some were able to flee.

Reilly continued to give radio updates to Weddell as he headed for the illegal immigrants.

"Twenty minutes to ETA (estimated time of arrival at the new area)," the soldier said.

Then a call came.

"We're about 10 minutes out (from the group of illegal immigrants)," Reilly said.

Reilly, Baughman and the agents then hid, waiting for the arrival of a Border Patrol helicopter to illuminate the area.

As the chopper arrived from the fort's Libby Army Airfield, a light from the aircraft changed part of the mountainous terrain from night to day.

Reilly's mike open, the sounds of the pursuers and the pursued could be heard around him. Illegal immigrants were told to stop, sit and given other directions.

Weddell said there has been a lot of preparation in the partnership between the MPs and the Border Patrol. They have trained together and have a better understanding of each other's responsibilities.

During operations, "adrenaline is 10 percent of your activity and success is how you use the other 90 percent," the major said.

There was a lot of bottled up adrenaline Saturday morning.

Moving closer to the action, Weddell, who initially stayed back so as not give away the possible location of his soldiers and the Border Patrol agents, got to the area as the helicopter's spotlight moved from one area to another.

The soldiers and agents turned their flashlights on and tracked down illegal immigrants.

One of the illegal immigrants climbed a tree in hopes of not being spotted. The helicopter was soon directly overhead, its light shining on the young man like he was on stage playing the most important role in his life.

Reilly was beneath the man, trying to entice him out of the tree. Instead of giving up the futile attempt not be taken, the illegal immigrant swung a fist at the soldier.

"I reached up and pulled him out of the tree," Reilly said.

That man ended up with his hands tied behind his back, a fate that two others received for struggling.

Soon, a dozen illegal immigrants were brought down to a rocky rock and made to sit down.

Two more joined the group, and then one by one the number of illegal immigrants grew until 22 men and three women were in custody.

Each illegal immigrant was searched. Lighters and tweezers were taken away from them.

When an illegal immigrant pulled money from his pocket, he was told to put the money back in his pocket.

"We don't touch money," Reilly said.

The illegal immigrants in the group were warmly dressed, many of them wearing similar jackets.

"I wonder whose their outfitter," a Border Patrol agent said.

As searches in the hilly terrain continued for others, the 25 illegal immigrants who were caught walked about a half mile to where a Border Patrol bus waited to take them to the agency's Naco Station for processing and treatment - a man fell and the right side of his face was bloody.

As the illegal immigrants arrived at the bus parked near Fort Huachuca's historic cemetery, not far from the Bonnie Blink family housing area, the looks on their faces ranged from sadness to bitterness. There was anger in some eyes, and tears in others.

For Reilly, the operation was a success.

The adrenaline rush gone, the hot sweat on Reilly's face turned cold in the early morning air, the temperature reading 37 degrees Fahrenheit.

The heat of the chase was over.

HERALD/REVIEW senior reporter Bill Hess can be reached at 515-4615 or by e-mail at bill.hess@svherald.com.

Copyright © 2004 Sierra Vista Herald.

Newmexican,

Can you imagine Terrorist (OTM's) knowing about a base? They probably do.