So it isn’t just “corrupt Mexican officials” anymore. (I would say it never was only them, whatwith Americans being human as well.)
Here are some excerpts from this story:
| Federal law enforcement officials are investigating a series of bribery and smuggling cases in what they fear is a sign of increased corruption among officers who patrol the Mexican border.
Two brothers who worked for the U.S. Border Patrol disappeared in June while under investigation for smuggling drugs and immigrants, and are believed to have fled to Mexico. In the past month, two agents from Customs and Border Protection, which guards border checkpoints, were indicted for taking bribes to allow illegal immigrants to enter the United States. And earlier this month, two Border Patrol supervisory agents pleaded guilty to accepting nearly $200,000 in payoffs to release smugglers and illegal immigrants who had been detained. Authorities say two factors are causing concern that larger problems may develop: The massive buildup of Border Patrol agents in recent years has led to worries that hiring standards have been lowered; and, as smugglers demand higher and higher fees to bring illegal immigrants into the United States, their efforts to bribe those guarding the border have intensified. |
So has any USBP agent been bought off by Al Qaeda yet? Say for ten times the above amount?
Then there’s this tidbit:
| More than 90 percent of U.S. law enforcement agencies use psychological tests or polygraphs in their recruiting, but the Border Patrol does not. Kevin Gilmartin, a Tucson-based law enforcement consultant who has worked with the FBI and local law enforcement for two decades, said the Border Patrol must raise its standards and administer polygraph tests. |
That is unbelievable. And astounding.
But this can be comforting, I suppose:
| Customs and Border Protection’s Clemens defended the agency’s recruiting, saying that only one in 30 applicants to the Border Patrol is accepted after screening. “We think our screening process is pretty rigorous,” she said. |
Good deal.