Retired president of Border Patrol union indicted (updated)
Retired president of Border Patrol union indicted
http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/oXh...png_162613.png Associated Press – 9 mins ago
SAN DIEGO (AP) — The retired, longtime president of the National Border Patrol Union was indicted Thursday for diverting thousands of dollars in union funds for personal use, federal prosecutors said.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in San Diego said in a statement that a grand jury charged T.J. Bonner for conspiracy, fraud and other counts.
The indictment says Bonner used the position he held for more than two decades to obtain payment for supposedly union-related work and travel that were in fact personal.
"These false claims included periods of time when Bonner was actually visiting his mistress in Chicago or family members, as well as trips to attend non-union activities such as hockey games and other sporting events," the indictment says.
Retired president of Border Patrol union indicted - Yahoo! News
Retired President of Border Patrol Union Indicted
Retired President of Border Patrol Union Indicted
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By By ELLIOT SPAGAT Associated Press
SAN DIEGO August 17, 2012 (AP)
Terence J. Bonner, who led the union representing Border Patrol agents for more than two decades until his retirement last year, was indicted by a federal grand jury Thursday on charges of diverting hundreds of thousands of dollars in union funds for personal use.
Bonner, president of the National Border Patrol Council for 22 years starting in 1989, is accused of submitting expense vouchers for meals, car rentals, luggage, books and other union-related activities when he was traveling for personal reasons.
The false claims cover periods when he was visiting his mistress in Chicago, his family, hockey games and other sporting events unrelated to the union, the indictment says.
"Siphoning hundreds of thousands of dollars from hard-working Border Patrol agents, many of whom put their lives on the line every day to protect this country, is a particularly troubling form of corruption that must be addressed," said Laura Duffy, the U.S. attorney in San Diego.
Bonner, 59, did not immediately respond to phone messages to his office and pager.
George McCubbin, who succeeded Bonner as union president, said the alleged corruption was limited to Bonner.
"Obviously this is going to be a black eye on our organization. For years we were always above any of this. It's clear this is an isolated incident," McCubbin told The Associated Press. "There are no other union officers involved. This is strictly on T.J."
McCubbin said the union's executive board learned about the investigation in April 2010. Bonner retired from the Border Patrol a month later after a 33-year career with the agency, and the union allowed him to continue serving as president until his two-year term expired in March 2011.
Bonner submitted six years' worth of travel expenses to the government at the end of 2009 and filed a grievance when the Border Patrol refused to pay, McCubbin said.
"The agency said this doesn't smell right, and that's when they started their investigation," he said.
The indictment says Bonner worked with an alleged conspirator who served as the union's secretary treasurer from 1978 to last year but does not name the person. Mark Conover, an assistant U.S. attorney, said the person has not been charged and declined to comment further on whether there are other targets.
Bonner, a San Diego-area resident widely known as T.J., has been a fixture on cable television and in congressional hearings. News reporters often turned to him for pithy quotes on border security issues even after he retired.
He was the union's voice at a time when the agency saw enormous growth to more than 20,000 agents and erected hundreds of miles of fencing and other barriers.
Retired President of Border Patrol Union Indicted - ABC News
Former Union Leader Misused Funds: Attorney
Former Union Leader Misused Funds: Attorney
By Sarah Grieco
| Thursday, Aug 16, 2012 | Updated 5:30 PM PM
A retired president of the National Border Patrol Union was indicted on federal charges of using hundreds of thousands of dollars in union funds for personal use, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
Terence Bonner allegedly diverted thousands of dollars in union funds for personal use.
The indictment accuses Bonner of using union dues while he was in charge to do things such as visit his mistress in Chicago or attend hockey games and other sporting events.
He held his position for more than 20 years.
Charges include conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and forfeiture of ill-gotten gains in connection with a scheme to defraud some 14,000 dues-paying union members.
In addition, the indictment alleges that Bonner submitted expense vouchers seeking reimbursement for union-related travel expenses such as meals, car rentals, tips, luggage, books and magazines -- when he was traveling for personal reasons, including vacations and other non-union activity.
According to the indictment, Bonner used his position to enact a number of unusual policies to benefit himself and other union officials, such as reimbursement for clothing expenses and up to $800 a year for gifts.
During his tenure, Bonner initiated a policy requiring the union to pay premium rates for work completed on Sundays, holidays and night shifts. But the indictment states Bonner allegedly submitted false claims for “lost wages,” including “seeking ‘lost wages’ for time frames when he was not working on union activities but at home, downloading, viewing and archiving” inappropriate material.
Bonner will appear in court on Aug. 20
Former Union Leader Misused Funds: Attorney | NBC 7 San Diego
Ex-Border Patrol union chief enters plea in fraud case
Ex-Border Patrol union chief enters plea in fraud case
Written by
Greg Moran
11:42 a.m., Aug. 20, 2012
Also of interest
SAN DIEGO — The former leader of the union representing Border Patrol agents pleaded not guilty in federal court in San Diego Monday to charges he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from the national union through bogus reimbursement and pay claims.
http://media.utsandiego.com/img/phot...9bad77005ad092
T.J. Bonner, the longtime former leader of the national union for Border Patrol agents, arrives at federal court in San Diego for his arraignment on an in indictment accusing him of funneling hundreds of thousands of dollars in union funds for his own use. — Howard Lipin
T.J. Bonner was indicted last week on a dozen charges of wire fraud and conspiracy. At a brief hearing before Magistrate Judge Jan Adler, Bonner's bond was set at $100,000. He also was ordered to surrender his personal firearms, which is a customary condition of bail.
The indictment capped a two-year probe into the 59-year-old Campo resident who headed the National Border Patrol Council for 22 years before leaving in 2011.
By then, Bonner was under investigation for defrauding the union by submitting claims for cars, clothing and other expenses he said he incurred while traveling on union business. He also submitted claims for tens of thousands of dollars in lost pay he said was due him because he was working on union business instead of for the Border Patrol.
Prosecutors said such claims were false. They said instead of traveling on union business, Bonner was on personal business, including visiting a mistress in Chicago. Prosecutors said the lost pay claims were for time Bonner was at home viewing, downloading and archiving pornography.
Bonner has said he is innocent and has come out aggressively refuting the charges. He said he will be exonerated, that all of his payment claims were legitimate, and the indictment is political payback because he was a frequent critic of various border security policies under Democratic and Republican presidential administrations.
Ex-Border Patrol union chief enters plea in fraud case | UTSanDiego.com
Former head of Border Patrol union pleads innocent in fraud case
By Cynthia Johnston Reuters
8:39 p.m. CDT, August 20, 2012
Reuters
SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - The former head the U.S. Border Patrol agents union pleaded innocent on Monday to siphoning off union and government funds to enrich himself, claiming outside court that the charges were retaliation against him for speaking out against the government.
Terence "T.J." Bonner, who served for 22 years as president of the National Border Patrol Council, was indicted last week on accusations that he siphoned off hundreds of thousands of dollars in part to maintain a mistress in Chicago and pay for pornography.
He entered not guilty pleas to 11 counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud during a brief hearing in U.S. District Court in San Diego.
A judge allowed Bonner to remain free on a $100,000 bond after his attorney, Eugene Iredale, told the court Bonner was not a flight risk because he intends to vigorously fight the charges against him.
The indictment charges Bonner with submitting false claims from the union fund for business travel, overtime and weekend wages, and for reimbursement for credit card and other expenses.
Some of those reimbursed claims include money for hard drives loaded with pornography purchased with union credit cards and others were for trips to see a mistress in Chicago that were represented as union business, according to the indictment.
Outside court Bonner said the charges were in reprisal for his vocal criticism of the U.S. Department of Justice.
"It is retaliation and they are out to discredit me for speaking out in the past and the future," he said. "It is a very strong message to anyone else in the agency who might be thinking about speaking out - character assassination is a pretty effective way of discouraging people."
Federal prosecutors declined to comment outside court.
Bonner has blasted the Justice Department over the failed "Fast and Furious" gun-running investigation, an operation intended to track weapons sold in Arizona that were suspected of being transported to Mexican drug cartels.
Officials with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives lost track of many weapons and some were allowed to enter Mexico.
The operation became public when two guns found at the scene along the Arizona border with Mexico where U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian Terry was killed in December 2010 were traced back to Fast and Furious.
Former head of Border Patrol union pleads innocent in fraud case - chicagotribune.com
Ex-Border Patrol Union President Indicted for Embezzlement
Ex-Border Patrol Union President Indicted for Embezzlement
Submitted by Carl Horowitz on Mon, 09/24/2012 - 14:34
http://nlpc.org/files/images[8]_2.jpg
Terence "T.J." Bonner (see photo) headed a union that guards our borders from illegal entries from Mexico and Canada. Unfortunately, for years he allegedly engaged in illegal entries of his own - in the union's coffers and books.
On August 16, a San Diego federal grand jury indicted Bonner on 11 counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy for his diversion of hundreds of thousands of dollars from the National Border Patrol Council (NBPC) for his own use. Until his retirement last year, Bonner had headed the council for more than two decades. Prosecutors say that he and an unindicted co-conspirator, a union official, defrauded members and concealed the thefts by submitting false financial statements. At his August 20 arraignment, Bonner pleaded not guilty to all counts. A conviction would be a sad career ending for someone truly committed to national security.
The National Border Patrol Council, an affiliate of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), represents roughly 14,000 dues-paying law enforcement agents and support staff of the U.S. Border Patrol. The Border Patrol is part of Customs and Border Protection, which in turn is a component of the Department of Homeland Security. Many of these employees risk their safety each day to prevent illegal immigrants, drug smugglers and other lawbreakers from crossing our borders.
T.J. Bonner, now 59, a resident of the San Diego-area border town of Campo, Calif., gave every appearance of being a dedicated public servant. He was an outspoken advocate for Border Patrol agents and their union, raising the level of public awareness of the need for more effective border control. When Agent Brian Terry, part of a four-man Border Patrol Tactical Unit, was murdered by a group of armed Mexican thugs in December 2010 in an unpopulated area in Arizona, Bonner minced no words. "This is an unspeakable tragedy," he said. "The gun battle occurred in an area 15-18 miles within the United States, in one of many areas along the border with Mexico that is out of control." Bonner added that those who claim our Mexican border has become safe "either don't have a good grasp of the situation or are lying deliberately." The U.S. Justice Department this past July indicted five suspects in that case.
Four of them were at large at the time; Mexican authorities announced on September 8 that they had captured one of those suspects.
What NBPC rank and file didn't know was that since the early years of his presidency, which began in 1989, their boss, T.J. Bonner, likely had been pilfering funds from the NBPC till. On numerous occasions, Bonner allegedly obtained reimbursements for ostensibly union-related activities that went for personal use. The indictment noted: "These false claims included periods of time when Bonner was actually visiting his mistress in Chicago or family members, as well as trips to attend non-Union activities, such as hockey games and other sporting events." He also received expense voucher reimbursements for vacations, clothing purchases and up to $800 a year to "purchase one or more gifts and/or meals for their spouse or ‘significant other' and/or children at any time of their choosing."
There was more. Bonner also allegedly benefited illegally from a "lost wages" policy that he initiated requiring the union to pay its officials premium rates for working on Sundays, holidays and night shifts, thus putting these employees on par with Border Patrol agents who work these shifts. Bonner submitted claims for lost wages, said the indictment, "for time frames in which he was not working on union activities but instead at home, downloading, viewing and archiving" what the Justice Department says is "inappropriate" material. He also submitted and obtained reimbursement "for dozens of hard drives used to store" such material "not maintained in furtherance of union activity and whose presence on Border patrol computers would have been specifically prohibited by government policy." Finally, Bonner and an alleged co-conspirator, identified only as a union secretary-treasurer, concealed from union members "the manner in which Bonner was being personally enriched at Union expense."
Apparently, the fraud added up. The indictment listed $87,863 in false "lost wages" claims during 2007-10 and $48,067 from other false claims during that period. All told, Bonner "obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars in union funds to which he was not entitled." The executive board of the National Border Patrol Council first learned about an ongoing federal investigation in April 2010, shortly before Bonner's scheduled mandatory retirement. The union allowed him to serve out his final two-year term until it expired in March 2011. It was the allegedly phony expense reports that triggered an investigation.
According to Bonner's successor, George McCubbin, Bonner received special treatment from the secretary-treasurer, whom the indictment did not indicate by name. "When we submitted expense vouchers, he never questioned anything for T.J.," said McCubbin. "If we submitted something and forgot a receipt, he'd circle it and send it back to us. He didn't do that with T.J."
Bonner vehemently denies wrongdoing. And he insists the investigation and resulting indictment are part of a politically-motivated vendetta against him for his frequent criticism of the federal government's record on border security during Republican as well as Democratic administrations. "The federal government will continue lying to the American people about the security of our borders; an honest man's reputation will be destroyed; and millions of tax dollars will be wasted in an ineffectual wild goose chase," he remarked. Bonner also characterized President McCubbin's remarks as "whining," adding, "The union definitely threw me under the wheels of the bus." U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy put it differently: "Siphoning hundreds of thousands of dollars from hard-working fellow Border Patrol agents, many of whom put their lives on the line every day to protect this country, is a particularly troubling form of corruption that must be addressed." Once again, truth will out.
Ex-Border Patrol Union President Indicted for Embezzlement | National Legal and Policy Center
EX-BORDER PATROL UNION BOSS FIGHTS FRAUD CHARGES
By Greg Moran
12:01 a.m.Jan. 22, 2013
Updated9:51 p.m.Jan. 21, 2013
U-T San Diego
Attorney files slew of motions attacking charges that he defrauded union for years
SAN DIEGO — In the two decades he led the labor union for the nation’s Border Patrol agents, T.J. Bonner carved a public profile as an aggressive advocate for his members and as a blunt, fearless critic of government policy.
Now Bonner, a Campo resident who retired from the agency two years ago, is bringing the same no-holds-barred approach to his biggest battle yet — fighting charges by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Diego that he defrauded the union out of hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years.
Bonner’s lawyer, Eugene Iredale, has filed a slew of pretrial motions, attacking elements of the government’s case and challenging the very basis for the investigation that led to Bonner’s indictment in August.
Among the targets are the search warrants that federal investigators served on Bonner’s two-story home in March. Bonner is also seeking to have the case dismissed on unusual grounds — that the agents who led the criminal probe did not have the authority under federal law to do so.
Federal prosecutors have responded that the warrants were valid and the evidence seized from them should be allowed.
Bonner, 59, has pleaded not guilty to charges of wire fraud and conspiracy. He was the leader of the National Border Patrol Council from 1989 to 2011.
The indictment says that during that time, he submitted false claims for reimbursement for wages, travel, meals and tickets to professional sports games. His reimbursement claims would say he had incurred the expenses while working on union business, when the government said he was not, and in many instances was actually visiting a mistress outside of Chicago.
The government said he defrauded the union out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Bonner has countered by contending the investigation is a retaliation against him by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Border Patrol for his years of work as the union leader and as a persistent thorn in their side.
In the March search, agents seized what Iredale described as “massive amounts of data” from various computers and computer data storage devices in Bonner’s home. Iredale said in court filings that the seizure went far beyond what was called for in a warrant approved by a federal magistrate judge.
Investigators, who had been looking into Bonner’s activities since late 2009 or early 2010, sought items such as bank records, financial statements and personal expense records.
Some 10,000 gigabytes of data — the equivalent of about 5 billion pages of text — were hauled out of the home, Iredale wrote in court papers. Included among those items are notes of “internal strategy discussions” of the labor union, performance appraisals, and emails between Bonner and a law firm that represented him before Iredale took on the case.
A second motion filed by Iredale challenges the investigation itself. The probe was headed by agents with the internal affairs section of Customs and Border Protection.
Iredale said federal rules governing criminal investigations only allow internal affairs agents to conduct criminal investigations if the inspector general for the Department of Homeland Security first declines to conduct its own investigation and then agrees to oversee the investigation by internal affairs.
There is nothing to indicate the inspector general ever weighed in on whether it wanted to conduct a criminal probe of Bonner, and therefore the entire case should be dismissed, Iredale said.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Huie declined last week to comment on the allegations. Prosecutors will be filing their replies in a few weeks.
In an interview, Iredale said the investigation “was completely unjustified” and an attempt to get back at Bonner.
“T.J. had a habit of speaking his mind, unequivocally,” Iredale said.
In doing so, he said, Bonner criticized Border Patrol agency chiefs and policies, and “spoke out vigorously” for union members over the years.
“There is an inference that this is payback and that, for whatever reason, CBP internal affairs was chosen to be the instrument,” Iredale said.
None of the legal attacks deals with the substantive charges in the case — that Bonner defrauded the union. A hearing on Bonner’s motions is scheduled for March. No trial date has been set.
EX-BORDER PATROL UNION BOSS FIGHTS FRAUD CHARGES Page 1 of 2 | UTSanDiego.com
Case dropped against ex-Border Patrol union boss
Case dropped against ex-Border Patrol union boss
Created: 02/11/2014 7:57 PM WNYT.com
By: ELLIOT SPAGAT
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Federal prosecutors on Tuesday dropped corruption charges against the longtime former head of the union representing Border Patrol agents, 18 months after accusing him of defrauding the organization out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
U.S. District Judge William Hayes agreed to the government's request to dismiss nine counts of conspiracy and fraud against Terence J. Bonner one day before a key hearing to determine what evidence would be allowed at trial. The decision followed a series of pretrial setbacks for prosecutors, including a ruling that that they cannot use pornographic images and other evidence seized from computers in Bonner's home.
Bonner, former president of the National Border Patrol Council, said the prosecution was "pure political retribution" for his outspoken positions against immigration and law enforcement policies.
"I feel relieved, but at the same time I feel violated, for lack of a better word," he said in an interview. "I've undergone four years of hell, where they've dragged my name through the mud and made baseless allegations against me. ... It was a message they were sending against anyone who speaks out against the policies of the government."
Prosecutors said the pretrial rulings caused them to seek dismissal of the charges.
"The grand jury found probable cause that Mr. Bonner had committed the offenses set forth in the indictment," said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy.
"From time to time in criminal cases certain evidence is suppressed for legal or technical reasons. We respect the process and the court."
Bonner, 60, was the union's president from 1989 until he retired in 2011 — a period of major growth in U.S. border enforcement. The indictment says he represented more than 14,000 agents and other employees who paid monthly dues of $56 to the union, which is part of the American Federation of Government Employees and AFL-CIO.
Bonner, widely known as T.J., was a fixture on cable television and in congressional hearings. News reporters often turned to him for critical commentaries on immigration enforcement policies even after he retired.
In August 2012, prosecutors accused him of submitting expense vouchers for meals, car rentals, luggage, books and other activities when he was traveling for personal reasons. The indictment said his false claims cover periods when he was visiting a mistress in Chicago, his family, hockey games and other sporting events unrelated to the union.
Prosecutors refiled charges in September after the judge ruled much of the evidence inadmissible. The judge scheduled an evidentiary hearing only five days before Bonner was to go on trial last week.
The two-day hearing to further consider what evidence would be allowed was scheduled to begin Wednesday and was to include questioning and cross-examination of witnesses. Bonner's attorney, Eugene Iredale, planned to argue that the case relied on evidence that was obtained outside the scope of a search warrant executed in March 2012 at Bonner's home in Campo, about 60 miles east of San Diego.
Bonner said the judge's decision to order the hearing was the prosecution's "death knell."
"This case has consumed my life in all of my waking moments and caused me many sleepless nights," he said. "It has taken an emotional and financial toll on me and pushed me to the edge of bankruptcy. You wonder what it is wrong with our system of justice."
The National Border Patrol Council's current leadership has distanced itself from Bonner, saying after charges were filed that it adopted tighter internal controls.
http://wnyt.com/article/stories/S3321537.shtml?cat=300
Former Border Patrol Union Chief Claims Vendetta
SAN DIEGO February 12, 2014 (AP)
By ELLIOT SPAGAT Associated Press
Associated Press
Terence J. Bonner was a fixture on cable television and at congressional hearings for years, using his position as longtime head of the Border Patrol agents' union to assail government policies. He used the same aggressive style to confront federal charges that he defrauded the union out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Federal prosecutors on Tuesday dropped nine counts of conspiracy and fraud against the 60-year-old former president of the National Border Patrol Council after a series of pretrial setbacks, including a ruling that that they could not use pornographic images and other evidence seized from computers in Bonner's home.
Bonner, who has vigorously maintained his innocence, was as defiant Tuesday as he was when charges were filed in August 2012. He called the prosecution "pure political retribution" and a vendetta for his outspoken stands against immigration and law enforcement policies.
"It was a message they were sending against anyone who speaks out against the policies of the government," he said.
Prosecutors accused him of submitting expense vouchers for meals, car rentals, luggage, books and other activities when he was traveling for personal reasons. The indictment said his false claims cover periods when he was visiting a mistress in Chicago, his family, hockey games and other sporting events unrelated to the union.
Prosecutors refiled charges in September after U.S. District Judge William Hayes ruled much of the evidence inadmissible, dropping accusations that Bonner claimed to be working on union issues while downloading pornography on his computer. The judge scheduled an evidentiary hearing only five days before Bonner was to go on trial last week.
The two-day hearing to further consider what evidence would be allowed was scheduled to begin Wednesday and was to include questioning and cross-examination of witnesses. Bonner's attorney, Eugene Iredale, planned to argue that the case rested on evidence that was obtained outside the scope of a search warrant executed in March 2012 at Bonner's home in Campo, about 60 miles east of San Diego.
Bonner, widely known as T.J., said the judge's decision to order the hearing was the prosecution's "death knell."
"They were in checkmate," he said. "They never had a case from the very beginning."
The U.S. attorney's office in San Diego said it disagreed that evidence was obtained improperly but that the pretrial rulings prompted it to ask the judge to dismiss the case.
"The grand jury found probable cause that Mr. Bonner had committed the offenses set forth in the indictment," said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. "From time to time in criminal cases certain evidence is suppressed for legal or technical reasons. We respect the process and the court."
Bonner was the union's president from 1989 until he retired in 2011 — a period of major growth in U.S. border enforcement. The indictment says he represented more than 14,000 agents and other employees who paid monthly dues of $56 to the union, which is part of the American Federation of Government Employees and AFL-CIO.
"This case has consumed my life in all of my waking moments and caused me many sleepless nights," he said. "It has taken an emotional and financial toll on me and pushed me to the edge of bankruptcy. You wonder what it is wrong with our system of justice."
The National Border Patrol Council's current leadership has distanced itself from Bonner, saying after charges were filed that it adopted tighter internal controls.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/c...-boss-22471532
