Tagged: smugglers

June 2nd, 2023 About the Book Comments Off on Distrito Bravo: The Outlaw District

Distrito Bravo: The Outlaw District

READ THIS TERRIFIC NEW MEMOIR about drug enforcement along our increasingly lawless southern border by retired U.S. Customs James C. Marchant. Stationed out of El Paso, Texas, the author spent three decades confronting drug traffickers, modern-day gunslingers, and desperados of every stripe in the badlands along the Rio Grande downstream from El Paso. A truly remarkable story, told with a writer’s eye for telling detail.

From the Amazon book page:

Conflict at the U.S./Mexico border has been brewing for decades . . . but the drug lords aren’t the only enemy.

In the lawless Distrito Bravo region, U.S. Customs Special Agent James Marchant develops a fearsome reputation for his uncanny ability to ambush drug smugglers and thwart their deals.

Surprisingly, his success is largely due to his determination to treat all people with respect and dignity. Marchant forges indelible friendships with civilians on both sides of the border and also with some of the very criminals he pursues. The brave souls in Marchant’s network risk everything to help him.

When his victories attract attention in Washington, D.C., Marchant soon learns the cartels aren’t the only enemy he faces. Corrupt individuals within U.S. government agencies are profiting from the continued war on drugs—but he stands in their way.

Marchant confronts dangerous foes both within his government and across the border, finding courage in his commitment to truth and justice. His experience on the front lines of America’s drug war shines a light on current border policies, their effect on the region, and the truth about how high-stakes decisions are actually made.

A sampling of praise for Distrito Bravo:

“I started this book and could not put it down!” Sgt. First Class (Ret.) William “Bill” Baggs

“Distrito Bravo Is an eye-opening account of crime, families, crime families, friendships, and faith along the U.S.-Mexico border. The dual threat of narcotics-murderers in Mexican cartels and cowardly, corrupt political operatives in the U.S. government is put into clear focus . . . a detailed, compelling, firsthand overview of 30 years of bungled border policy that people of all political stripes concerned about border security, concerned about the safety of women and children at the border, and concerned about civil liberties in the United States, should read.” —Marcel Sanchez, El Paso educator

“Distrito Bravo is an accurate, detailed record of events that took place on the U.S. border around El Paso, Texas. Exemplary job performances and dedication to duty of U.S. Customs agents are shown struggling with bureaucratic oversight that frequently hindered real border enforcement operations. Senior officials never hesitated to disavow of pull support from such operations should any unforeseen event disrupt their political agendas. These agents put their lives on the line in service to our country, fighting the free flow of narcotics into our cities and communities.” —Michael Warren, pilot (Ret.), Governor’s Office, State of New Mexico

“This book had to be written! Marchant makes the reader aware of what happened at our borders from the ‘70s to the ‘90s, and it is still happening at the present time. The book shows how difficult it is for dedicated law enforcement officers to do their jobs. It is essential reading to be able to understand the current situation at our southern border. Hopefully, it will trigger the changes necessary to secure our border. Unfortunately, those changes must come from the top, initiated by competent leaders who put the well-being of our nation before their own personal interests.” —Gerd R. Holz, former E-8 MSG, German Air Force and U.S. citizen

[AMAZON]

February 14th, 2017 Breaking News Comments Off on Mexican smuggler says Trump’s wall won’t stop him

Mexican smuggler says Trump’s wall won’t stop him

(SEEKER) — He grew up poor in Nogales, Mexico, just across the border from Arizona. His dad died when he was a teen, his mother worked as a cook. He couldn’t afford the things he wanted. There weren’t many jobs for a guy like Pancho, as he calls himself.

But there was a steady gig that paid $2,000 a week — smuggling marijuana across the U.S.-Mexico border — and Pancho took it. He’s 29 now, a father of five, and he says he works long hours to support his family, “so that they won’t be in need.” It’s a risky life, but he’s done it for 12 years, and he doesn’t think anything President Donald Trump does about a border wall will stop the illegal narcotics trade.

“No matter what you do here, we can still get through,” said Pancho, while sitting in the dim light of an abandoned tenement just a few minutes south of the border. It was cold and damp, and he sat hunched in a chair in a musty room with a dirty old mattress and newspapers scattered across the floor. The fence along the border used to be shorter, he recalled. It’s higher now, but that’s no impediment.

Smugglers always seem to find a way around such obstacles — over, under or around. US law enforcement agents know this.

“Drugs will come in through every direction,” said Santa Cruz County Sheriff Tony Estrada in Nogales, Ariz., located just across the border. “They’ll throw the drugs over the fence. They’ll push them through.” That or they will tunnel beneath or send people deep into the mountains, where the fence is less obtrusive.

“These cartels, they’re a 24/7 business, thinking of ways to bring drugs across,” Estrada continued. “They’ll do it through the ports of entry, the Mariposa commercial port. You know, they’ll get a ton, two tons of marijuana come in on some of those trailers.”

The drug smuggling is unrelenting.

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