Two US border inspectors in Southern California are accused of taking thousands of dollars with bribes to allow people to enter the country through the country’s busiest port of entry without displaying documents, prosecutors said.
US customs and border guards Faris Almonte and Ricardo Rodriguez have been assigned to the immigration inspection booth at San Isidro Entry Port. They were charged after investigators found evidence of phone calls indicating they had exchanged messages with Mexican traffickers and found cash deposits of unknown cause had been found in their bank accounts, according to a criminal charge sealed on Thursday.
Surveillance video was documented in at least one instance, where a vehicle with a driver and passenger was stopped at a checkpoint, but only the driver entered the country, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said officers shook dozens of vehicles carrying undocumented people. They said both men were paid thousands for each vehicle they swung.
It was not immediately clear whether Almonte had a lawyer who could speak on his behalf.
Rodriguez’s lawyer Michael Hawkins said the case was still in the “infant stage” and that Rodriguez had a presumption of innocence.
“We look forward to getting through the current situation,” Hawkins said in an email describing Rodriguez as hardworking and loyal.
The investigation into Almonte and Rodriguez told federal agents that three immigrant smugglers arrested last year told federal agents they were working with U.S. border inspectors, federal prosecutors said.
While Almonte was in custody, investigators allegedly seized nearly $70,000 in cash, which he believes his romantic partner is about to move to Tijuana. Prosecutors wrote in a court application that Almonte may face additional charges for money laundering and obstructing justice, the San Diego Union Tribune reported.
Canadian actress Jasmine Mooney appeared in “American Pie Presents: A Book of Love,” but has made a statement after being detained by US immigrants and customs enforcement while trying to renew her workplace visa. The entrepreneur was detained by immigrants on March 3 after crossing the US-Mexico border and attempting to reapply for a visa. After 12 days, Mooney was released and returned to Vancouver on March 15th, where she spoke to the media about her experiences.
“Customs and border security agents who turn their eyes or turn their eyes to smugglers who take undocumented immigrants to the United States are betraying their pledge and putting our national security at risk,” Attorney Andrew Hayden said in a statement.
Five customs and border guards have been assigned to the San Diego area to face similar corruption charges over the past two years.
Last year, former US border inspector Leonard Darnell George was sentenced to 23 years in prison for having bribes to allow people and drug-containing vehicles to enter the country through the San Isidro border intersection. Otay Mesa and two other former border officers at Tecate Port were charged with similar charges last year. They are scheduled to go to court this summer.
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