It works both ways doesn't it?

Illinois woman wanted on warrant captured at El Paso port of entry
Times staff report
Posted: 12/30/2008 11:17:59 AM MST


EL PASO - U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers performing inspections at the El Paso port of entry apprehended a woman wanted by Illinois law enforcement authorities on an outstanding armed and dangerous warrant Monday afternoon, according to a CBP news release.
The apprehension was made without incident shortly after 1 p.m. at the Paso Del Norte crossing when 46-year-old Mary Ann Gibson entered the facility as a pedestrian. As required under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI), the woman presented a U.S. passport as her formal entry document. A CBP officer queried the information on the document and received a positive match for a National Crime Information Center (NCIC) warrant out of Will County, Illinois (http://www.willcosheriff.com/pages/warrants/).

CBP officers confirmed the warrant and placed the woman into custody without incident. She was turned over to the El Paso Police Department and booked into the El Paso County Detention Facility to await extradition to Illinois. She is being held without bond.

"Thorough document reviews by CBP officers at El Paso area ports generate between 25 and 40 fugitive apprehensions every week," said Ana Hinojosa, CBP Director of Field Operations in El Paso. "Every time a CBP officer identifies and apprehends a wanted person, it makes this city and this nation a safer place to live."

Since January of this year, U.S. citizens returning at an international land border crossing like El Paso must present a passport, pass card, or other Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) compliant document to enter the United States.

At this time CBP remains in a transition period so those U.S. citizens who do not have a WHTI document can still legally enter the country by presenting a government issued photo ID and proof of citizenship (birth certificate) to the CBP officer at the port of entry.

Full implementation of WHTI requirements will go into effect in June 2009. Additional expanded information on WHTI can be found at the following U.S. State Department web site: http://travel.state.gov/travel/cbpmc/cbpmc_2223.html

While anti-terrorism is the primary mission of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the inspection process at the ports of entry associated with this mission results in impressive numbers of enforcement actions in all categories.

http://www.elpasotimes.com/newupdated/ci_11336385