66 Records of Alleged Abusive or Improper Conduct where the victim classification is “Mexico”

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January 17, 2024

A January 17 Arizona Daily Star report described freezing temperatures and lack of access to basic necessities threatening asylum seekers gathered outdoors along the border, especially in southern Arizona. As many as 1,000 people were reported awaiting processing in the Tohono O’odham Nation lands along the border in the remote desert southwest of Tucson. A majority of the arrivals reported in this region, as cited by the Arizona Daily Star and described by Tohono O’odham Chairman Verlon Jose, are asylum seekers in family units, including young children.

Since December, aid workers have coordinated daily presence in the Arizona border region, particularly in the context of freezing temperatures and heavy rains, often being the sole providers of food, water, shelter, medical care, and addressing the growing sanitation needs. A volunteer described his experience, “shoveling human excrement into [the] trenches that were dug”. Volunteers were also reportedly transporting asylum seekers experiencing medical emergencies, despite Border Patrol’s threats to arrest them, as volunteers described the lack of response by authorities even in dire situations.

Volunteers from Southern Arizona humanitarian aid group, No More Deaths, built a make-shift encampment in the desert region east of Sásabe, with tents and a cooking area, and attached tarps to the border wall to create additional shelters from the cold. CBP subsequently placed “cease-and-desist” signs on the tarps, stating it was a safety hazard and interfered with law enforcement and construction crews’ access to the road, as well as obstructed visibility.

After pressure from aid workers and the Tohono O’odham nation, Customs and Border Protection installed one large, heated tent, portable toilets, and a hand washing station near the San Miguel gate.

“It’s solely their responsibility to be doing almost everything that we’re currently doing”, stated a humanitarian aid volunteer.

Bregel, Emily. “Life-Threatening Cold, ‘sanitation Crisis’ for Migrants at Arizona-Mexico Border.” Arizona Daily Star, January 17, 2024. https://tucson.com/news/local/subscriber/arizona-mexico-border-tohono-oodham-asylumseekers-migrants-surge/article_52e4a176-b565-11ee-87a6-67208722eaeb.html.

Sector(s): Border Patrol, CBP, Tucson

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Conditions in Custody, Conditions of Arrest or Apprehension, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable, Disregard of Public Health, Endangerment

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico

December 19, 2023

A Texas Public Radio report described the case of a migrant woman and child who were recorded by eyewitnesses pleading Border Patrol officers in a nearby airboat for help as they appeared to be drowning in the Rio Grande. Eyewitnesses stated that both the woman and child “went under for a while” and then resurfaced on the water, while a CBP airboat sped by “a few feet away from the woman and child, offering no assistance”.

TPR reported that the Texas Military Department determined that the woman and child were not in need of medical attention nor experiencing medical distress. From their assessment, they stated the migrants were capable of returning the short distance back to the Mexican shore.

—Pablo De La Rosa, “Video shows Texas National Guard soldiers appearing to ignore a mother and baby’s pleas for help in the Rio Grande” (Texas Public Radio, December 19, 2023) https://www.tpr.org/border-immigration/2023-12-18/video-shows-texas-national-guard-members-appearing-to-ignore-a-mother-and-babys-pleas-for-help-in-the-rio-grande.

Sector(s): Del Rio

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Family Unit, Female, Mexico

September 14, 2023

Reporting on September 14, 2023, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted a case of an attempted kidnapping of a migrant woman. When she arrived at the port of entry to request asylum, she was turned away without access to an asylum process.

Nuria [name changed to protect privacy] fled Quintana Roo after a narcotrafficking group tried to take her as their “woman.” She turned herself into Border Patrol, where agents asked why she wanted asylum. She explained her situation, but the agents only took her fingerprints, said, “There’s no asylum for you. Asylum is closed,” and sent her back to Mexico.

Kino Border Initiative. 2022. “Congressional Year End Report 2023.” Https://Www.Kinoborderinitiative.Org/Annual-Report/. Kino Border Initiative. https://www.kinoborderinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Congressional-Year-End-Report-2023_.pdf.

Sector(s): Border Patrol, CBP

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Denial of Access to Asylum, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Female, Mexico

August 17, 2023

On August 17, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted the case of a young migrant who was denied access to asylum and misled with false information.

“This week, a young man, Jesus* [name changed to protect privacy] fleeing organized crime in Southern Mexico arrived at KBI after paying thousands of dollars to a coyote in an attempt to seek asylum. “The coyotes say you turn yourself into Border Patrol and you get asylum, but it’s not true,” he said. BP agents told him, “there is no asylum for Mexicans,” and told him he could either be deported or sign his voluntary return.”

Sector(s): Border Patrol

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Compelling Signature of English-Language Documents, Denial of Access to Asylum, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable, Lying or Deliberate Misleading

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico

August 17, 2023

On August 17, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted that a migrant family was separated by Border Patrol and required to sign a voluntary return document.

“Patricia*[name changed to protect privacy], her 18-year-old son, her daughter-in-law, and grandchildren are fleeing threats in Mexico. When BP encountered them, they separated Patricia [name changed to protect privacy] from her son, as well as from her daughter in law and grandchildren. The agents didn’t ask any questions; they said they had to sign their voluntary return if they would receive jail time as punishment. Patricia asked if they would return her at the same time as her son because he is only 18. The agents said they would, but soon, she saw her son lining up with other men. BP returned her son at 8 pm to Nogales and returned her until the following day.”

Sector(s): Border Patrol

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Compelling Signature of English-Language Documents, Family Separation

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico

August 17, 2023

On August 17, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted that a DACA recipient was denied reentry into the U.S. by CBP, for unclear reasons, while also being separated from their sibling and having their diabetes medication confiscated.

“Fernando* [name changed to protect privacy] grew up in the US and was a DACA recipient. His mother in Mexico got very sick, and he applied and received advance parole to go to visit her. However, upon his return to the US, CBP denied his entry and he is unclear as to the reason. He began to work in Southern Mexico, where his sister lived, until organized crime took over the city. They demanded he pay a protection fee and told him he had 3 days to pay them 15,000 pesos ($875 USD). They fled to Central Mexico, but the same group located them there. They fled to the border, where BP agents apprehended them. The agents said if they signed their voluntary return, they would be able to stay together throughout the process. However, they returned Fernando alone and he hasn’t heard from his sister in 3 days. BP agents also threw away his diabetes medication.”

Sector(s): CBP

Agency(ies): CBP

Event Type(s): Conditions of Arrest or Apprehension

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico

August 17, 2023

On August 17, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted the following case.

“Over the past 2 weeks, KBI received multiple reports of Border Patrol pressuring or coercing Mexican nationals into signing their voluntary return after having asked for asylum, without a fear interview, and separating family members, including a mother from her 18-year-old son.”

Sector(s): Border Patrol

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Compelling Signature of English-Language Documents, Denial of Access to Asylum, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable, Inappropriate Deportation

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico

August 3, 2023

On August 3, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), reported the case of a migrant family from Southern Mexico that fled to the U.S. border to seek asylum. Border Patrol mistreated the family, denied them asylum, and expelled them back to Mexico.

“Leonora*[name changed to protect privacy] and her 3 kids fled Southern Mexico to save her daughter from sexual violence. They turned themselves into Border Patrol and after Leonora [name changed to protect privacy] tried to explain why they were fleeing, the BP agent responded, “you’re in charge of defending your own kids; you can’t just come to the US.” The agents made fun of her and laughed at her and made her sign a document- they said if she didn’t sign it, she would be a criminal and would be subject to consequences for 10 years. They were detained for 3 nights, after which BP expelled them at 10 pm despite local repatriation agreements that require that these repatriations occur before 6:30 pm.”

Sector(s): Border Patrol

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Abusive Language, Conditions in Custody, Conditions of Arrest or Apprehension, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable, Endangerment, Falsification or Negligent Handling of Asylum Paperwork

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Accompanied Child, Family Unit, Mexico

August 3,2023

Reporting on August 3, 2023, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted the case of a family seeking asylum, fleeing from Mexico. The mother of the family attempted to explain why she and her family needed to enter the U.S. but were not given the opportunity by Border Patrol. Border Patrol made her sign a voluntary removal form, stating that her refusal would result in five years of punishment and deportation to Mexico.

One agent said his supervisor “didn’t authorize asylum for them; that people from the state of Guanajuato aren’t eligible for asylum.”

Sector(s): Border Patrol, CBP

Agency(ies): Border Patrol, CBP

Event Type(s): Compelling Signature of English-Language Documents, Denial of Access to Asylum, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable, Inappropriate Deportation, Lying or Deliberate Misleading, Return of Vulnerable Individuals

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico

August 3, 2023

Reporting on August 3, 2023, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted receiving consistent reports of Mexican asylum seekers being removed or returned without undergoing fear interviews. Among those affected are two Mexican families who were belittled, made fun of, and returned to Mexico without being asked their reasons for requesting asylum.

Sector(s): Border Patrol, Border-Wide, CBP

Agency(ies): Border Patrol, CBP

Event Type(s): Denial of Access to Asylum, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable, Inappropriate Deportation

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico

July 20, 2023

Reporting on July 20, 2023, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted a case of a Mexican national seeking asylum near Sasabe, Arizona. The migrant was taken to a station and was detained for two nights, never given a fear interview.

KBI described the incident, “They just took his fingerprints and information and then put him on a bus without saying where it was going. BP returned him to Mexico at 10:30 pm and he and others who were removed or returned had to walk through the city at night until they found a hotel and split the cost.”

Sector(s): Border Patrol

Agency(ies): Border Patrol, CBP

Event Type(s): Denial of Access to Asylum, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable, Inappropriate Deportation, Lying or Deliberate Misleading, Return of Vulnerable Individuals

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico, Single Adult

July 20, 2023

Reporting on July 20, 2023, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted five cases of Mexican asylum seekers being deported without fear interviews to assess their eligibility for an asylum process. Among cases cited, a young mother fleeing Southern Mexico with her son and other family members turned themselves into Border Patrol to request asylum. The mother and child were separated from the family members they were traveling with and were not asked their reason for requesting asylum. Border Patrol made the young mother sign for her voluntary return. She and her son were sent to Nogales, Sonora at 9 pm, in violation of bilateral agreements that required the repatriation of unaccompanied women between the hours of 8 am and 6:30 pm. The mother approached Border Patrol agents at the Nogales Port of Entry for help in seeking asylum and was told by an officer that “they couldn’t do anything”.

Sector(s): Border Patrol, CBP

Agency(ies): Border Patrol, CBP

Event Type(s): Compelling Signature of English-Language Documents, Denial of Access to Asylum, Inappropriate Deportation

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Family Unit, Mexico

July 6, 2023

Reporting on July 6, 2023, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted a case of a mother and child fleeing from Guerrero to seek asylum in the U.S., after an organized crime group threatened to recruit her son after her husband fled to seek asylum in the U.S. to avoid recruitment. Once arriving at one of the ports of entry to request asylum, she was told that asylum was not offered there and forced to sign voluntary deportation or be detained and still not receive asylum. After signing, Border Patrol deported her and her family to Nogales.

Upon arriving at the border, to request asylum, the BP agent said “They didn’t do that there and told her she must sign a voluntary departure. She said she did not want to sign it because she could not go back, but another agent dressed in civilian clothing approached and said she either signs it there or signs it inside [in detention], but if she didn’t sign, she wouldn’t be able to get asylum.”

Sector(s): Border Patrol

Agency(ies): Border Patrol, CBP

Event Type(s): Compelling Signature of English-Language Documents, Denial of Access to Asylum

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Family Unit, Female, Mexico, Single Adult

July 6, 2023

Reporting on July 6, 2023, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted a case of intimidation by Border Patrol agents to encourage a migrant’s signing of voluntary deportation, resulting in the separation of a grandfather from his two minor grandchildren who stayed in the U.S. under ORR’s custody.

Among cases cited:

For instance, BP apprehended Alberto* [name changed to protect privacy] and his grandchildren who are fleeing violence. A BP agent asked him if he could return to Mexico to which he responded he could not. However, a second agent continued to ask with more pressure, “Can you return to your country, yes or no?”Alberto felt intimidated into saying yes. They asked nothing further and made him sign his deportation. Alberto and his 19 year old granddaughter were deported and separated from his 2 minor grandchildren, who stayed in the US under ORR’s custody.

Sector(s): Border Patrol, CBP

Agency(ies): Border Patrol, CBP

Event Type(s): Denial of Access to Asylum, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable, Family Separation, Inappropriate Deportation, Lying or Deliberate Misleading

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Family Unit, Mexico

Early May, 2023

Reporting on May 11, 2023, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI) recounted a case of family separation in Border Patrol custody.

Esme [name changed to protect privacy] fled southern Mexico with her sister and nephew. Esme’s sister has a disability that impedes her communication and comprehension. When they turned themselves into Border Patrol, the agents separated Esme from her sister and nephew, despite the legal document she had naming her as her sister’s legal guardian. CBP immediately expelled Esme while her sister and nephew remained detained. However, Esme’s sister did not have the contact information of her brother who would receive them in the US. Agents said if they couldn’t find family members in the US, they would remove her son to process him as an unaccompanied minor. Upon hearing they would be separated, her 9 year old son started crying and they asked to be expelled back to Mexico to remain together.

— “May 11 update from KBI” (Nogales: Kino Border Initiative, May 11, 2023).

Sector(s): Tucson

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable, Family Separation

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Disability, Family Unit, Mexico

April 8, 2023

An analysis from the American Immigration Council’s Dara Lind recounted the case of a father who was killed in front of his children in Tijuana, several weeks after being turned away at the port of entry. This case is one of several testimonies collected by the American Immigration Council, as part of a lawsuit challenging CBP’s continued turnbacks of asylum seekers at ports of entry.

On April 8, the Mexican family came to the San Ysidro port of entry in Tijuana and asked to be let into the United States to seek asylum, as they were fleeing immediate cartel violence in Mexico. The father had been shot and his arm was bleeding. According to the mother, their family begged the U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers to let them through the gates.

“We showed CBP officers my husband’s bleeding wound and explained the immediate danger we were in,” [the wife] testifie[d]. The officers refused. They told the family that since they didn’t have an appointment for the day via the CBP One app, they had no right to flee the cartel.

The family finally got a CBP One appointment in July 2023, but they had to exclude the father, since on May 1, while the family headed to the Tijuana airport in an attempt to flee to Canada, they were attacked again, resulting in a shooting that killed the father of the family. He died in front of his wife, their 5-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son.

— Lind, Dara. “CBP’s Continued ‘Turnbacks’ Are Sending Asylum Seekers Back to Lethal Danger.” Immigration Impact (blog), August 10, 2023. https://immigrationimpact.com/2023/08/10/cbp-turnback-policy-lawsuit-danger/.

Sector(s): San Diego Field Office

Agency(ies): Office of Field Operations

Event Type(s): Denial of Access to Asylum, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable, Endangerment

Last Known Accountability Status: Lawsuit or Claim Filed

Victim Classification: Family Unit, Mexico

January 13, 2023

A male citizen of Mexico died on January 13 in the back of a Border Patrol vehicle that was transporting him, handcuffed, from a remote Arizona location to a hospital.

A long narrative that CBP published on February 27 relates that the man was taken first from the field to a Border Patrol operating base, then to the Border Patrol’s Ajo Station in Why, Arizona, then to the Abrazo Buckeye Emergency Medical Center in Buckeye, Arizona. (Original link) It was during the last leg of the trip that the man passed away. “Upon arrival at the ambulance entrance, one of the agents attempted to wake the man to no avail.”

The CBP release narrates that the deceased man at one point “began to kick the interior of the USBP vehicle,” and later was “acting in a combative and agitated manner while sitting in the back seat.” He had “sustained an injury to his left ankle while attempting to elude apprehension,” and agents “suspected the man’s behavior may be related to the ingestion of drugs.”

“The Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office performed an autopsy on January 15, 2023,” the release reads. “The final cause and manner of death are pending further investigation including toxicology testing.”

The Arizona Daily Star appeared to have identified the deceased man:

One pending autopsy case at the Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office says a man named Martin Peraza-Perez, 34, was in Border Patrol custody the day he died on Jan. 13.

A man with that same name and age was convicted of unauthorized re-entry into the country on or around July 25, 2022. He had been previously removed from the country three times and had also been convicted in Maricopa County Superior Court on a 2013 felony of marijuana transport and/or sale, according to a complaint in the case.

CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) is investigating the incident, and the DHS Office of Inspector-General was notified. “Additionally, CBP’s Office of the Chief Medical Officer and an independent clinician will be conducting a mortality review of this incident.”

— U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “Man Apprehended in Remote Arizona Location Pronounced Deceased,” February 27, 2023. <https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/speeches-and-statements/man-apprehended-remote-arizona-location-pronounced-deceased>.

— Khmara, Danyelle. “Migrant Dies in Border Patrol Custody in Southern Arizona.” Arizona Daily Star. March 1, 2023. <https://tucson.com/news/local/border/migrant-dies-in-border-patrol-custody-in-southern-arizona/article_1dcb3a1c-b864-11ed-8bba-e30f6a8b3078.html>.

Sector(s): Tucson

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Conditions of Arrest or Apprehension

Last Known Accountability Status: Shared with DHS OIG, Under OPR Investigation

Victim Classification: Mexico, Single Adult

Early December 2022

Reporting on December 15, 2022, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI) stated, “Over the past 2 weeks, KBI staff learned about 5 cases of family separation at the border, a practice that disorients and traumatizes families.”

Among cases cited:

Margarita [name changed to protect privacy], her sister, and her cousin turned themselves in to BP [Border Patrol], seeking protection after fleeing violence in Southern Mexico. BP agents separated them and deported Margarita in one location and her cousin and her sister in another. Margarita was robbed after being deported alone in Nogales.

— “December 15 update from KBI” (Nogales: Kino Border Initiative, December 15, 2022).

Sector(s): Tucson

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Family Separation

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Family Unit, Female, Mexico

Early December 2022

Reporting on December 15, 2022, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI) stated, “Over the past 2 weeks, KBI received 11 reports of Border Patrol (BP) confiscating personal belongings and never returning them. These reports include 3 deported people who explained that BP took thousands of Mexican pesos from them (1,000 pesos = $50 USD), leaving them unable to pay for transportation or basic necessities.”

Among cases cited:

Upon Fernando’s [name changed to protect privacy] apprehension, BP agents took most of his clothes, his phone, wallet and 4,400 Mexican pesos ($221 USD). They transferred him to US Marshals custody, where agents took the rest of his clothes and his Mexican ID and put them in a bag. After his court hearing, he heard agents saying he was to be deported the next day, but he tested positive for COVID and went to isolation for 9 days.

Afterwards, he was held under custody for 13 more days because BP said he had requested asylum, even though he had not. When he had an interview with an asylum officer, Fernando explained he had not requested asylum and wanted to be deported as soon as possible. The officer responded: “If you keep saying that and don’t calm down, you’re going to stay here even longer.” ICE officials then asked Fernando to sign a document saying he had received the $175.65 he had earned by working in detention, but they never gave him the money.

On December 7th, he was deported with none of his belongings, nor the money he had earned. He shared: “I had worked sometimes a shift of 12 hours to earn every $2 of that money.”

— “December 15 update from KBI” (Nogales: Kino Border Initiative, December 15, 2022).

Sector(s): Tucson

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Non-Return of Belongings

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico, Single Adult

Early December 2022

Among cases cited:

BP deported Ronaldo [name changed to protect privacy] without any of the personal belongings he had when they apprehended him, including his Mexican ID and 7,500 Mexican pesos ($378 USD).

— “December 15 update from KBI” (Nogales: Kino Border Initiative, December 15, 2022).

Sector(s): Tucson

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Non-Return of Belongings

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico, Single Adult

November 30, 2022

The Department of Justice reported the indictment of Aaron Mitchell, 27, on “three counts: a civil rights violation for sexually assaulting and kidnapping a minor victim, kidnapping a minor victim, and misleading state investigators.” (Original link) The Department’s statement, and prosecutors’ November 10 brief opposing Mitchell’s release from pretrial detention, identified Mitchell as being “employed as a Customs and Border Patrol Officer (CBPO)”—which most likely means an officer of CBP’s Office of Field Operations.

On April 25, 2022, Mitchell allegedly kidnapped and sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl in Arizona. (Original link) The victim, a citizen of Mexico, was on her way to school in Arizona.

Mitchell, wearing police attire, told the girl he was a police officer and asked to see her documents. After she complied, Mitchell ordered her to get in his car, saying they needed to go to the police station. But Mitchell did not drive her to the police station—he drove her an hour away to his apartment.

After finishing an in-custody interview with Mitchell, Douglas, Arizona police left their video recording equipment on. According to the prosecution’s document, “That video recorder caught Mitchell muttering to himself, ‘I cannot believe this s—. F—ing little b——. B—— is claiming rape. That’s so f—ing crazy. That’s crazy, man. She better hope I don’t get out of here.’”

Mitchell had served as a CBP officer for 10 months at the time of his arrest.

— U.S. Department of Justice. “Former Customs and Border Protection Agent Indicted for Federal Civil Rights Violation for Sexually Assaulting and Kidnapping a Minor,” November 30, 2022. <https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-customs-and-border-protection-agent-indicted-federal-civil-rights-violation-sexually>.

— Restaino, Gary M., Christina M. Cabanillas, Carin C. Duryee, Kristen Clarke, Erin H. Flynn, and Brant S. Levine. “U.S. v. Mitchell No. 22-10268.” U.S. Department of Justice, November 10, 2022. <https://www.justice.gov/crt/case-document/file/1551906/download>.

— Siemaszko, Corky. “Former CBP Agent Accused of Sexually Assaulting a Minor Was Caught on Video Threatening His Accuser.” NBC News, December 7, 2022. <https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/former-cbp-agent-accused-sexually-assaulting-minor-was-caught-video-th-rcna60222>.

Sector(s): Tucson Field Office

Agency(ies): Office of Field Operations

Event Type(s): Abuse of Minor, Sexual Assault or Harassment, Threat of Violence, Unethical Off-Duty Behavior

Last Known Accountability Status: Criminal Charges Pending, Under Judicial Review

Victim Classification: Accompanied Child, Female, Mexico, Sexual Abuse Victim

Early November, 2022

Reporting on November 10, 2022, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI) stated, “Over the past 2 weeks, 11 people have reported to Kino the confiscation and disposal of their personal belongings by Border Patrol. In these cases, Border Patrol deports people without their most necessary personal belongings, such as identity documents, money and cell phones, which often leaves them stranded and unable to communicate with family members.”

Among cases cited:

Last week, Emanuel [name changed to protect privacy] arrived at Kino after being deported without any of his belongings. BP [Border Patrol] confiscated his belongings when they apprehended him and never returned them. He called the Mexican Consulate but they said they could not mail his items to Mexico. He lost his Mexican ID, cell phone, 1,500 pesos ($77 USD), credit card, and watch. He was only able to communicate with his family members and tell them he was okay after arriving to Kino where he borrowed a phone.

— “Early November Update on the Border, Asylum and Deportations from KBI” (Nogales: Kino Border Initiative, November 10, 2022).

Sector(s): Tucson

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Non-Return of Belongings

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico, Single Adult

Early November, 2022

The Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI) recounted the experience of Leticia [name changed to protect privacy], a Mexican migrant who sought asylum in the United States after she and her husband spent a month in captivity, kidnapped for ransom by organized crime.

After crossing and entering Border Patrol custody, KBI reported, “US agents asked Leticia and her husband 10 questions during about 10 minutes about why they came to the US. Despite explaining the persecution they fled in Guerrero and the hostage situation they had just escaped, CBP expelled them back across the border to the same area where they had been held hostage with no explanation.”

— “Early November Update on the Border, Asylum and Deportations from KBI” (Nogales: Kino Border Initiative, November 10, 2022).

Sector(s): Tucson

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Dangerous Deportation, Denial of Protection to Most Vulnerable

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Kidnap Victim, Mexico, Single Adult

October 30, 2022

Members of Border Patrol’s SWAT-style tactical unit, BORTAC, shot and killed an individual on U.S. soil near San Luis, Arizona, about 15 miles southwest of Yuma.

A CBP statement claimed that a Border Patrol remote camera operator detected six individuals crossing into the United States, one of them armed with a handgun. (Original link) After BORTAC showed up at the scene, about 300 yards from the borderline, “three agents fired their weapons, striking and killing one of the subjects,” a man, CBP reported. The agency noted that a handgun was found near the man’s body, but did not specify what provoked the agents to open fire.

Agents took four people into custody, and one fled into Mexico. The deceased man was a Mexican citizen, the Mexican consulate confirmed. “The consulate also said in a statement that the man killed was ‘allegedly the guide of the group” that crossed into the U.S.,’ according to the Tucson Sentinel.

The Sentinel added, “This is the fifth fatal incident involving Border Patrol agents in Arizona this year, and one of nearly two dozen use-of-force incidents involving agents in the Yuma Sector… and the Tucson Sector. This includes two car crashes involving smugglers, a shooting in rugged terrain in southeastern Arizona, and an incident near Douglas, Ariz. when an agent stabbed a man twice while grappling with him.”

The incident is under investigation by the FBI, the San Luis Police Department, and CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility. The case was also referred to DHS’ Office of Inspector General, and, CBP reports, “will be reviewed by CBP’s National Use of Force Review Board at the conclusion of the investigation.”

— Ortiz, Fernie. “Border Patrol Agents Shoot and Kill Armed Migrant near Arizona-Mexico Border.” BorderReport, November 8, 2022. <https://www.borderreport.com/immigration/border-patrol-agents-shoot-and-kill-armed-migrant-near-arizona-mexico-border/>.

— U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “CBP Statement on Agent-Involved Fatal Shooting near San Luis, Arizona,” November 5, 2022. <https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/speeches-and-statements/cbp-statement-agent-involved-fatal-shooting-near-san-luis-arizona>.

— Ingram, Paul. “Border Patrol Agents Shot & Killed Armed Man near San Luis in October.” TucsonSentinel.Com, November 21, 2022. <http://www.tucsonsentinel.com/local/report//112122_bp_shooting_san_luis/>.

Sector(s): Yuma

Agency(ies): Border Patrol, BORTAC

Event Type(s): Use of Force

Last Known Accountability Status: Shared with DHS OIG, To be reviewed by Use of Force Review Board, Under FBI Investigation, Under Local Police investigation, Under OPR Investigation

Victim Classification: Mexico, Single Adult

Mid-October, 2022

Reporting on October 27, 2022, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI) recounted a Mexican migrant’s inability to receive prompt medical care in Border Patrol custody after being bitten by a venomous animal.

As Caleb [name changed to protect privacy] was crossing the desert, a Border Patrol helicopter appeared overhead and he laid down on the ground, only to be stung by a venomous scorpion on his hip. When a BP agent approached him, Caleb told him he had been stung and needed medical attention, as he was having trouble breathing and his throat felt tingly. The agent told him to sit down and be quiet. After being transported to Yuma, Caleb asked again for medical attention and showed an agent his sting, but she told him to wait. He waited in a holding cell from sometime in the afternoon until 3 am, when there was a shift change and the agent coming on duty saw his condition and immediately brought him to the ER to get an anti-venom shot. Over the course of his detention, he had trouble getting the antibiotics that he needed to prevent the sting from getting infected and also lost all his personal belongings that BP had confiscated, despite contacting the Mexican Consulate for assistance getting them returned.

— “October 27 update from KBI” (Nogales: Kino Border Initiative, October 27, 2022).

Sector(s): Tucson

Agency(ies): Border Patrol

Event Type(s): Denial of Medical Care, Non-Return of Belongings

Last Known Accountability Status: Unknown

Victim Classification: Mexico, Single Adult

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