Jul 15, 7:04 PM EDT


Govt. mum on why agent suspect wasn't extradited






TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) -- In separate letters, White House and Justice Department officials have failed to tell 39 congressmen why a now-freed suspect in a Border Patrol agent's death was not extradited from Mexico.

Mexico says the United States sought extradition after Jesus Navarro Montes was freed on unrelated charges.

Presidential counsel Fred Fielding wrote that the White House deferred to the Justice Department "to avoid saying anything that might interfere with or undermine" its investigation's effectiveness.

And Deputy Assistant Attorney General Keith Nelson wrote that Justice remains firmly committed to the case but providing more information would "inevitably compromise" that goal.

California Rep. Brian Bilbray says the responses "are bureaucratic and lack transparency" and said Americans seem to be getting more information from the Mexican Embassy.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/ ... TE=DEFAULT