Border Patrol Auxiliary Assists In Search Efforts

Feb. 4, 2008 - PRLog -- Boulevard, CA---What began as a routine training weekend for the San Diego based Border Patrol Auxiliary (www.BPAUX.org) turned into anything but. The group, an independent non-profit association dedicated to educating private citizens on border security, was alerted to a developing situation on arriving at a remote area along the US/Mexican border Saturday.

Another private group that places water stations along the border for illegal crossers was conducting an independent search effort near the Lakeside Gun Club in Jewel Valley. On approaching the group, Border Patrol Auxiliary leadership discovered they were searching for a young woman and her infant child believed lost in the area eight days prior. BPAUX notified Border Patrol who arrived at the scene and questioned the group of seven from the organization Angeles Del Desierto (Angels of the Desert).

Leader Rafael Hernandez explained to Border Patrol and BPAUX they had received word from another illegal border crosser, that eight days earlier a human smuggler (Coyote) had abandoned a woman and her infant child when leading them across the border illegally into the US. Subsequently days later, another illegal border crosser reported to Angeles Del Desierto he had seen a dead woman holding an infant baby in her arms in an abandoned structure near the border on the US side north of an area known to smugglers as El Longo. Mexican authorities had been notified but US Border Patrol had not.  

The Patrol Agent on the scene explained to Hernandez that if they had been notified in a timely fashion, a BORSTAR Border Patrol Rescue Team would have been dispatched to the area immediately and this may have been a Search and Rescue mission rather than a Search and Recovery.  

As the Border Angels were unfamiliar with this mountainous terrain, BPAUX then fielded twelve of their Red Cross Certified Professional Rescuers on the MSAR Team to scour the area to search for the lost woman and child. Inclement weather and darkness stopped the search efforts as the area is very remote, mountainous and highly dangerous. Border Patrol is engaged in an ongoing battle with drug and human smugglers in the area. BPAUX members will resume the search when the weather system clears, in support of ongoing Border Patrol efforts to find the woman and child now presumed dead.

“It is clear that if  Desert Angels or the Mexican authorities had notified Border Patrol when this occurred, there might have been a different outcome.” noted Carl Braun, Co-Founder of the Border Patrol Auxiliary. “Eight days is a long time to try and survive in this cold, mountainous desert area without food, water and shelter. Unfortunately, the despicable acts of these “Coyote” smugglers, abandoning the weak and infirmed, is just one of the reasons we volunteer for this duty.” He added.

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About Border Patrol Auxiliary:
The Border Patrol Auxiliary is a private association and is not in any way affiliated with the Border Patrol or Department of Homeland Security though most members are former BP Agents, Law Enforcement and retired military.  BPAUX is sponsored by the Homeland Security Policy Institute Group, a non profit “think tank” and headquartered in Murrieta.  BPAUX is engaged in training private citizens in Homeland Security and has a Marine Division, CyberWatch Group and Field Services Division. Non-political in nature, BPAUX strives towards supporting the US Border Patrol and DHS in their mission to secure America. While it trains citizen watch groups using approved DHS training tools, BPAUX is not aligned with any Minuteman efforts though some members participate in both along with other activities like Red Cross and volunteer humanitarian groups.

Website: www.BPAUX.org