Editor’s Note: The fourth and final transfer from the archives of the now defunct No Stinking Amnesty website.
John, it’s been a long and bloody battle, and I am afraid the the biggest bunch of cowards, who have ever “served” in Washington DeCeit are about to turn loose the gerbils. The deaths of Kris Eggle, Nicholas Ivie, Brian Terry and so many others has been in vain. (Ed.)
In May of 1986, apprehensions of illegal aliens in Tucson Sector totaled over 8,000 which was up 42 percent from 1985.The records indicated that there were more arrests in the month of May than any period of time logged. Deaths were always a problem in the deserts of southern Arizona which included the vast Tohono Oodam Indian Nation. A newly formed Special Tracking and Rescue Team (STAR) was formed June 25, 1986 with nine volunteers. All agents were trained in first aid, signcutting, tracking skills, rappelling from helicopters, desert survival and extraction of injured people.The unit Commander was Thomas Wacker, Assistant Chief Patrol Agent. I was the official medic for this outstanding team of agents. Yuma, Arizona Sector had their own desert rescue teams in place to contend with the large numbers of illegal aliens entering the country without inspection in 1986.
The Green Valley News and the Arizona Star reporters were on scene when a U.S. Army Huey Helicopter transported part of our team to a rocky reppel zone near Gates Pass. The rest of the crew repelled down a slope with a ” military litter” to rescue a simulated injured person. The temperature was 110 degrees that day in June long ago. The old news clippings when Tucson Chief Patrol Agent J.D. Jondall made an official statement was very clear and concise.
The Chief stated that “Nationally, Border Patrol agents apprehend an illegal immigrant every 35 seconds-primarily along the Mexican Border. Last year 1.3 million illegal immigrants were sent back, and at the current rate in 1986, that number will hit a record 1.8 million“. Chief Jondall also stated that “Ninety-nine per cent of them come here to work, and it’s going to continue to get worse until we get some employer sanctions against those that hire them“.
“We’ve lost control of the whole border, from San Diego to Brownsville, Texas“. *Source: Arizona Daily Star, Desert Rescue June 25,1986.
The Amnesty of 1986 did not cease illegal entries but actually created many organized human trafficking cadres that transported countless foreign nationalities to all four regions of the nation. In the desert areas, it was not unusual for a lone agent to arrest walking groups of 50 to 100 illegal aliens.
Many Mexican nationals were still crossing the border, but large groups of Guatemalans, again in groups of 25, 50 to 100 were crossing the Indian Nation.
Guides were using dozens of smuggling trails enroute to Casa Grande, Chandler Hts. and Phoenix, Arizona, a smuggler’s paradise. Phoenix was a hub of “drop houses” prior to the Amnesty. By 1987, the Invasion was massive on all fronts. I applied for and was accepted as a member of the Tucson Anti-Smuggling Unit under Supervisory Special Agent Manual Escobdeo.
The U.S.B.P. investigative unit had an undercover, plainclothes assignment and a mission.The six man team of Special Agents worked large scale alien smuggling Category 1 cases in the state of Arizona and wherever target destinations were revealed. Through Confidential Informants, our people were able to infiltrate many international human trafficking organizations. Each agent had heavy case loads all over the sector. My partner, Willie Garcia and I were working the Guatemalan pipeline and were able to pose as smugglers who would transport illegals to labor contractors in California, Oregon, and Florida in 1988. The 2.7 million Special Agricultural Workers designated as legal in the 1986 Amnesty were not working the fields, but could now work anywhere and did. Guatemalans were recruited in their own country by U.S. labor contractors. The Guatemalans worked cheaper and were exploited in many regions of the U.S. some who allegedly died on the farms and were buried. Cheap labor needs knew no bounds, politically or morally.
Special Agent Garcia and I were able to gain the trust of some high level organizers and guides for multiple loads heading to Indiantown, Florida. A task force case was established with assistance from other Special Agents including my academy classmate Ted Jordan from Fresno, California. In an undercover capacity, we delivered several large groups of illegals to Florida guided by a cadre arranger. The labor contractors paid the smuggling fees and received the illegal workers who in turn had to pay in labor for their fare. A large majority were not paid for months, merely fed at the farm camps.
Identities of major players, guides, and arrangers were now known and Assistant U.S. Attorneys in four regions were on board for closing the case with evidence gained by many task force investigators. On 8/13/1988, we requested the Tohono Indian Police to stop a large truck with two under cover agents,Willie and I with three enforcer guides and 28 illegals. This was our last load in the operation.
In Operation Shorty, 145 criminal organizational heads were arrested under 8 USC 1424 and a total of 9,500 Guatemalans were deported.
Tucson Sector Anti-smuggling Agents meanwhile were equally busy with large scale smuggling operations to Phoenix, Arizona and destinations out of state. It wasn’t unusual for our investigators working surveillance on drop houses to spend weeks and months to gain prosecutable case evidence. Then the entire unit would execute search warrants and effect arrests. Many illegals from other countries could not pay smuggler’s fees and were held at drop houses until ransom from relatives arrived. Rape, extortion, beatings and murder were facts of life. Our team was frequently notified by illegals held against their will in stash houses. They were very happy to see us. This was two years after the IRCA Amnesty that would solve all immigration problems in the U.S.
Assaults and gunfire incidents directed against the Border Patrol increased sector by sector as the illegal alien invasion continued.
On May 5, 1989, Supervisory Border Patrol Agent John France and I were authorized to travel to Guatemala, City Guatemala. We were to meet with a confidential informant and three others that had information on organized criminal rings, baby smuggling and possible corruption of State/ INS Officials in Guatemala and Texas.
One of our contacts was the Commandante of the Guardia de Hacienda who was a friend and ally. The 1988 Case Operation Shorty hardly made an impact. Many major players were arrested, illegals deported, labor contractors arrested, yet in 1989 in Guatemala, City there was no change … Open advertisements in spanish stated “Workers needed in the United States, arrange for the trip, call —–your credit is good. Su Credito es bueno!”
False Identity cards and Passports to transit Mexico were available in finer shops in the hoods of the city. These were curious times but we were not allowed to carry a firearm in Mexico or Guatemala. This was during a period of time when the Guatemalan Military executed an attempted coup against President Vinicio Cerezo. The U.S. Embassy did not want U.S. Agents traveling south to Antiqua, near the El Salvadorian Border due to the political unrest but allowed us to proceed with the commandante who was well armed. Investigative information was recieved.
On September 6, 1989, two Fresno, California Special Agents that were task force partners in operation Shorty were shot during the arrests of alien smugglers. During a hail of gunfire, anti-smuggling agent Keith Connelly was killed on duty. Keith’s partner Ted Jordan who had assisted Tucson’s investigation was critically wounded but survived the gunfight. The perpetrators were found and tried for homicide. Keith received the Medal of Honor from the American Police Museum and Hall of Fame at the Livermore Border Patrol Sector HQ.
The violence attributed to human as well as narcotics smugglers was escalating with no end in sight for many years.
~ the Author ~
John W. Slagle (ret) Special Agent, Anti-Smuggling U.S.B.P., spent over 32 years defending this nation and was on duty Sept.11 at HQ Intelligence. After retirement in 2002, returning to his home in Arizona, the borders were over-run with illegals, death was an everyday occurance, the Mexican Military was escorting narcotics shipments and shooting at our Border Patrol Agents. Park Ranger Kris Eggle was murdered in an international incident involving Mexican Hit men, narcotics smugglers at Lukville and politicians with the exception of Colorado Congressman Tancredo, ignored the problem. The same situation existed with mainstream media. Even a load of illegal aliens whose vechicle was riddled with Mexican military machine gun fire was not worthy of attention.
Like many people, he tried to contact elected officials on the problems, and received standard form replies in return. Finally, he had enough and wrote ILLEGAL ENTRIES which is now published and shows three decades on the Borders, and how politicians have created the problems in illegal immigration from 1972 to 2004. Like many of his partners, some who were killed enforcing immigration laws, Amnesty for lawbreakers is a “kick in the face” to our honored dead. As a longtime conservative, he will not vote or support any elected official whose interests are not for U.S. Citizens or lawfully admitted resident aliens.