MAYHEM ALONG THE BORDER

Traffickers of people and drugs have become progressively more violent,
said Michael Gramley, Yuma sector Border Patrol public relations officer.

And last weekend was no exception.

Yuma-area Border Patrol agents and San Luis, Ariz., police were shot at,
hit with rocks and nearly rammed with a vehicle during a weekend of
violence and mayhem.

An agent was injured Sunday at about 10:30 p.m. when he was struck in the
back of the head with a rock. Agents were attempting to apprehend a group
of 17 suspected illegal aliens near the San Luis, Ariz., sewer plant,
according to the Border Patrol.

The injured agent sustained a large laceration, and was transported to Yuma
Regional Medical Center, where he was treated and released. The 17 people
escaped into Mexico.

Gramley said the agent's injuries could easily have been much more serious.

"We were very fortunate that none of the agents were critically injured,"
he said.

Agents used a PepperBall launching system to shoot at the rock throwers.
Gramley said the PepperBalls can be fired farther than most people can
throw rocks, so it's helpful as a deterrent against people who are
displaying aggressive behavior.

"It is not a replacement for deadly force," Gramley said. "If someone has a
rock large enough to cause death, an agent can justify deadly force."

About an hour later, two would-be illegal immigrants were injured when San
Luis, Ariz., police officers fired at an alien-smuggling minivan that was
headed toward Mexico while fleeing Border Patrol.

"Agents on the scene said all of the shots came from the police officers,"
Gramley said.

The driver of the minivan allegedly swerved to try to hit one of the
officers at the port of entry, shortly before midnight, Gramley said.
Mexican police are still searching for the driver.

The vehicle was traveling about 70 mph when it attempted to run down an
officer, at which point officers opened fire, according to a San Luis
Police Department news release.

The minivan missed the officer and the vehicle continued to San Luis Rio
Colorado, Son.

The two San Luis, Ariz., police officers involved in the incident are on
paid administrative leave pending an investigation into their conduct.

San Luis police spokesman Johnny Vidrio said the investigation is standard
procedure. He said placing the officers on leave doesn't mean they did
anything wrong.

San Luis Rio Colorado sub-chief Jesus Zamora said the minivan was carrying
between eight and 11 passengers at the time of the incident. The passengers
were all Mexican nationals and were lying down in the van so as not to be seen.

Zamora said one of injured person was hospitalized with bullets in his
buttocks early Monday morning and was released into police custody later
that day. The other person was shot in the thorax and is still in the
hospital in stable condition.

Zamora said the police have three of the people involved in the incident in
custody.

Gramley said agents have noticed that smugglers of people and drugs have
become more violent.

"They've become more assaultive with rocks in San Luis and with vehicles in
the desert east of San Luis where they typically drive from Mexico to the
United States," Gramley said.

These smugglers are often also carrying firearms, Gramley said.

El Centro sector Border Patrol public information officer Miguel Hernandez
said smugglers are earning between $1,500 and $2,000 to bring someone
across the border.

For them to successfully bring just one person across means a large sum of
money, he said.

"People are becoming more desperate and they will do whatever it takes," he
said.

At 2:30 a.m. Sunday, agents saw a subject wielding a butcher's knife jump
the border fence below Friendship Park in San Luis and illegally cross the
border.

Agents notified San Luis police, and the man eventually fled to Mexico.

At 5:55 a.m. Saturday, agents attempted to apprehend a group of illegal
aliens near County 22nd Street and the Salinity Canal in San Luis.

As one of the agents drove into the area, a man suddenly appeared on the
other side of the canal and fired five shots from a .22 caliber rifle at
the agent, according to a release.

The agent sought cover as he returned fire. No one was hit, and the shooter
fled.

"It was a very short distance for somebody to be shooting at him with a
rifle," Gramley said. "It was a suspected alien smuggler who was trying to
get us away from his group."

Many of the illegal aliens in the group were apprehended, Gramley said.

Soon after that incident, a Border Patrol aircraft observed a green Ford
Explorer driving into the U.S. from Mexico east of San Luis near Avenue 3E.

The pilot observed large bundles in the rear of the vehicle that were
suspected narcotics.

Near County 17th Street, agents converged on the Explorer and it turned
back to Mexico.

Nearing the border, the driver revved the engine and swerved toward an
agent on foot. The agent fired three rounds from his pistol at the driver
as another agent fired with a rifle.

"We haven't had shootings in awhile, and then we had two in about a half
hour," Gramley said.

The Explorer missed the agent on foot and continued into Mexico, where it
stopped along Highway 2.

Officers from the Mexican Highway Patrol took custody of the vehicle, which
they reported contained 205 kilograms of marijuana.

No one was found in the vehicle.

Officers reported finding bullet holes and blood. The FBI is investigating
both of these shooting incidents.

Also, the Border Patrol is still investigating a shooting that occurred at
the El Centro Border Patrol Station early Saturday morning.

At approximately 3:20 a.m., two U.S. Border Patrol agents who were standing
outside the building said they heard three shots fired.

No one was hurt in the incident, but one of the shots fired hit the boot
scraper, which agents use to clean their boots off during the rainy season,
Hernandez said.

Agents searched the surrounding area after the shooting and were able to
find a bullet, but no other evidence, Hernandez said.

"We don't know where the bullet came from or if they were targeting the
agents," Hernandez said.

Gramley said it is difficult to predict whether this sort of violence will
continue. He said as more agents are assigned to the Yuma sector, the area
will become more safe.

"I was surprised to see the volume of incidents," Gramley said.