30 illegal immigrants found locked in trailer

[TexasStooge]

By IAN McCANN / The Dallas Morning News

PARKER COUNTY, Texas - It was a discovery Trooper John Forrest says he makes too often: dozens of illegal immigrants locked in a stifling truck trailer with no food or water.

Sunday's find, made about 7:50 a.m. on Interstate 20 in Parker County, started as a random inspection stop but began to grow a bit strange, the Texas Department of Public Safety officer said.

"Both the driver and the co-driver were up and awake, and there was some nervousness that wasn't typical," said the trooper, who has worked in commercial vehicle enforcement for more than three decades. "There were some questions about the load, and I asked him to open the trailer so I could inspect it."

Among the Novamex sodas headed from El Paso to South Carolina were 30 people – 26 men and four women. Twenty were Brazilian, 10 Mexican.

Though it was only about 70 degrees outside, Trooper Forrest said, it was starting to get warm inside the trailer.

"That air was stale," he said. "They didn't have any water with them."

He said the load of people was headed to Fort Worth, just 15 or 20 minutes away from where the truck was stopped near Willow Park. He called for backup from the Parker County Sheriff's Department, which brought water, snacks and sandwiches for the immigrants, who had apparently been on the road since late Saturday.

Agents from U.S. Customs and Border Protection are processing the immigrants, who were being held at the Parker County Jail in Weatherford along with the drivers. The drivers were not identified, and it was not known Sunday what charges they could face.

The stop comes about a month after a woman pleaded guilty to charges of conspiring to transport illegal immigrants in a manner that led to deaths, related to a similar incident in May 2003 in Victoria in which 19 people died. Sentencing for 26-year-old Karla Patricia Chavez-Joya is set for Sept. 13 in Houston; she faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

In the incident that led to the charges, about 74 people were smuggled in by an 18-wheeler through the Rio Grande Valley in May 2003. The driver abandoned the trailer at a truck stop near Victoria when he discovered that some of the immigrants had died.

In November, Troy Phillip Dock, 32, and Jason Steven Sprague, 29, were sentenced to nearly 34 years in prison as a result of a July 2002 incident. Two immigrants were found dead and others injured in a trailer abandoned in the Collin County town of Anna.

Carl Rusnok, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman, said Sunday that immigrants are regularly transported in a similar manner.

"Just a week, week and a half ago, we had 32 aliens discovered in Sweetwater, Texas," just west of Abilene, Mr. Rusnok said. "These drivers put these people in the back of a tractor-trailer. You wouldn't even put your dog in that kind of environment. You just wonder what these guys are thinking. These smugglers couldn't care less about these people."

Trooper Forrest said he finds immigrants being smuggled in truck trailers about four times a year.

"You always feel sorry for the people," he said.

Though Mr. Rusnok and Trooper Forrest acknowledged that the immigrants were also breaking the law, the DPS officer said the lack of care for their safety is difficult to understand.

"Especially where we've had deaths, the drivers have been so irresponsible," Trooper Forrest said. "As much publicity as there's been about these deaths, you'd think they'd stop doing it."

[j]

I know this is horrible and all...but I'll be honest enough to admit I laughed when I read the subject line....

The smugglers are bad people..yes indeed...but nobody put a gun to the illegals heads and said "c'mon..pile in folks..plenty of room up front..ladies and children first".

[Kiko]

uhmmm... gun to head?

Everytime I hear of one of these episodes, I can't help to think of the Nazi death trains taking carloads of Jews to Auschwitz.



The main entrance of Auschwitz Extermination Camp, with its infamous motto "Work Makes One Free."

[Aslkahuna]

Ah Yes, Illegal smugglers are fun people-here in AZ they give free Wild West Gunfight shows on the Interstates to entertain the other drivers. The latest of which occurred on I-10 near the Kolb Road exit (one of the main exits in east Tucson). The fun all began when a SUV and another vehicle with smugglers inside opened fire on a van carrying illegals-the smugglers in the van returned fire with the result that the SUV was ultimately abandoned full of bullet holes. The van was stopped and the smugglers arrested and the illegals detained. Fortunately no other driver was hurt. Had a US CITIZEN or LEGAL resident been hurt, Bush and Fox would have expressed regrets but as long as the rights of the illegals weren't violated then everything would be okay. This latest incident concerns me since it occurred on the stretch of I-10 that I and my son drive frequently. The next day, drug smugglers got into a gunfight with a BP agent near Tucson-such is life along the Border thanks to Bush and our illustrious Senators and Congressjerks.

Steve

[Skywatch_NC]

[quote="j"]I know this is horrible and all...but I'll be honest enough to admit I laughed when I read the subject line....

The smugglers are bad people..yes indeed...but nobody put a gun to the illegals heads and said "c'mon..pile in folks..plenty of room up front..ladies and children first".[/quote]

Kiko, with all due respect...I agree w/ j...also it's not like they were being forced to go...unlike how the Jews were treated during the Holocaust.

[Kiko]

And the motto was...

"Work Makes One Free."

Dare I say that you and j don't really know the circumstances that put those people in that van. But a generalized view that they are gambling with their very lives to come to this wonderful land of opportunity?

The land we so love.

[j]

And the motto was...

"Work Makes One Free."

Dare I say that you and j don't really know the circumstances that put those people in that van. But a generalized view that they are gambling with their very lives to come to this wonderful land of opportunity?

The land we so love.

How about this great idea...Come to this country legally!
But...they are gamblers..they know the risks...its not like they haven't heard of the risks involved when you stack 100 people in the back of truck, and tell them not to hog all the air.

Sorry...I'm all for immigration...I just have little pity for those who choose to break the law, and then suck this great country dry, reaping benefits that natural born citizens have trouble obtaining.

As I look around this state I live in (SC) today, I am relieved that there are 30 fewer illegal aliens than if this group had made it here.

[GalvestonDuck]

OMG, how anyone could possibly ever compare a truckload of people who CHOOSE (and in most cases, PAY) for that ride across the border in an effort to get to the US to people who were forced to take that cold, somber, dark trainride into concentration camps where FREEDOM certainly did NOT wait for them on the other end and the only deliverance from their captivity was in a chamber designed for death.

Talk about apples and oranges.

[Guest]

OMG, how anyone could possibly ever compare a truckload of people who CHOOSE (and in most cases, PAY) for that ride across the border in an effort to get to the US to people who were forced to take that cold, somber, dark trainride into concentration camps where FREEDOM certainly did NOT wait for them on the other end and the only deliverance from their captivity was in a chamber designed for death.

Talk about apples and oranges.

Amen! Kiko's posts just absolutely dumbfound me. It scares me to think that people like that live in this country. I hope this Kiko person just likes stirring the pot, not that he actually feels this way.
...Jennifer...

[Kiko]

Mrschad, people like that not only live in this country but have served this country as military members. I lived overseas for ten years in the US Navy and you know what? No one over there scared me in the least.

Now what scares me is people who like to take other's words out of context and ascribe their own meanings to them.

Twice I've said now that what reminded me of these episodes was the Nazi slogan "Work Makes One Free". Now if you can't see the parallel to immigrants willing to work while trying to make a better life for themselves in a country that promises freedom, then that's your problem.

Perhaps you don't know that before the death trains cleared out the Jewish ghettos, laws were in place for years making it illegal in Nazi Germany to be Jewish and do much of anything to make a living for themselves and their families. They were starving and when the trains came to take them to 'work camps', many thought they actually had a hope for a future.

Much like today's immigrants, they didn't have a clue it would lead to their deaths.

So when do they give up their hopes for a better future? Halfways across the desert?

I would like people to stop and try to realize what it must mean just to step foot inside the van where desperation is alive and well in the world today.

And by the way, I'm a girl.

[GalvestonDuck]

First of all, I think you're referring to "illegal immigrants" when you say "Much like today's immigrants, they didn't have a clue it would lead to their deaths." Legal immigrants arrive via safer means of transportation with papers in hand and they typically don't go to "their deaths."

The ones coming over with "coyotes" (smugglers) are attempting to sneak across the border to live and work illegally over here and they know the consequences. If they don't, it's not like their country isn't sharing the news. I was visiting Mexico back when the news broke there (and here) about several dozen shallow graves being discovered south of the border. The coyotes had taken money (in many cases, thousands of dollars) from the people and given them the promise of safe passage to the US. But instead of bringing them here, they killed them. It's not a big secret in Mexico that people are dying when they attempt to sneak here illegally -- either from the heat or by someone else's hand. They KNOW it's not safe.

I suppose if the Jewish people paid to go to the "work camps" or if they had been killed by their own people, there might be some kind of a weird way to relate the two situations.

Now if you can't see the parallel to immigrants willing to work while trying to make a better life for themselves in a country that promises freedom, then that's your problem.

Sorry, I still can't -- and I seriously don't believe Holocaust survivors or their children could see that either. And if you do, that's a serious problem.

Furthermore, most LEGAL immigrants are willing to work and make a better life for themselves and their families. It's the illegal ones who tend to hide under the guise of a false identity and scam the government out of food stamps and other welfare.

You've lived overseas. Have you ever lived close to the Mexican border?

[Kiko]

Of course the holocaust survivors wouldn't see the parallel, but many victims that were German citizens still refused to give up their faith in mankind while being systematically eliminated from their very homeland.

Now I KNOW the parallel stops at the 'work' issue, that being the slogan the nazi's used as a ruse to ease their mind. I am not trying to say there are nazi's under the bed, it was a thought that occurred to me and now I'm VERY sorry to have shared it. OK?

No, I never lived near the Mexican border. Why don't you tell me what the big attraction is then if they know the risks they take and still put their life on the line?

That's what I'd like to know.

[Aslkahuna]

Then you need to come down here and see what the problem is like first hand for both us AND the Illegals. People here Cochise County don't mind legal immigration but having the illegals trash the land and criminally trespass of private property, threatening property owners and school children, carjackings, shootings and a whole bunch of other problems just isn't going over too well here. It has gotten worse since Bush proposed amnesty which has sent hoards crossing over in an attempt to be in the US when that occurs. Another problem is that interspersed with those who are crossing over for a better life are sex offenders reentering the US after being thrown out, other criminals including some of Mexico's most wanted, then there are the NOMO's (Not Of Mexican Origin) who come from all over including the Middle East and for reasons known only to them do not want to be seen entering the Country or can't do so legally. We know Iranians have made it in because of discarded documents written in Farsi-given the known connection between the Creeps from Afghanistan and the Islamic Republic, this has to give one pause.

Steve

[abajan]

I know this is horrible and all...but I'll be honest enough to admit I laughed when I read the subject line....

The smugglers are bad people..yes indeed...but nobody put a gun to the illegals heads and said "c'mon..pile in folks..plenty of room up front..ladies and children first".

I fail to see the humor. Illegal or not, they're people. I actually felt a little sad when I saw the subject line. No one deserves that. Picture the children among them.

[streetsoldier]

It will get even worse for these poor people; now, I hear that Mexican long-haul trucks will be able to drive anywhere in the US; where before this, they were restricted to a zone near the US/"E.E.U.U. de Mexico" border.

The possibilities are ugly, and I need not state them herein.

[Aslkahuna]

That's true, but the Mexican Trucking Companies have a very strong economic incentive to avoid allowing their trucks to be used for that purpose since not only do they lose the vehicle when it is impounded by the Feds, but repeated violations will cause them to lose their operating privileges inside the US.

Steve

[vbhoutex]

Many of these illegal immigrants are aware of the dangers of their crossing into the US the way they do I am sure.

One reason most of us do not understand why they do this in spite of the dangers is because most(if not all) of us have never had to live in the conditions these people do in their native countries. Living here in Texas for 33 years I've seen a lot. 3 and 4 families to an apartment(illegally of course)trying to make a better life for themselves and their family back home who have basically no hope of betterment there. Many of these illegal immigrants take the lowest paying jobs that some Americans(many) are too proud to take even though they can't feed their family. I've literally seen Americans come out to a job site and ask for work, be offered a job on the spot and then respond with "oh I don't do that kind of work" and we are not talking skilled labor. So the fact they take away American jobs doesn't generally wash with me. How many Americans do you know that move from state to state working the fields?

Don't get me wrong. I think we should seal our borders tight and force all immigrants to do it legally(as if that is possible). I am very much against illegal immigration, but some of the misinformation I saw posted in this thread needed addressing imo.

[abajan]

Excellent post, vbhoutex.

[j]

I know this is horrible and all...but I'll be honest enough to admit I laughed when I read the subject line....

The smugglers are bad people..yes indeed...but nobody put a gun to the illegals heads and said "c'mon..pile in folks..plenty of room up front..ladies and children first".

I fail to see the humor. Illegal or not, they're people. I actually felt a little sad when I saw the subject line. No one deserves that. Picture the children among them.

Critcism accepted, however, I hope you don't infer that by making that comment, I am any less compassionate a person than you. I also find humor in a picture of 30 Iraqi's hanging on to a beat up truck, with a caption to the affect of "The Iraqi Army". If that makes me a less sensitive person than you, then so be it!

Frankly...as soon as I see "Illegal Immigrants" in a subject line, I'm rev'd up for a fiery response. I'm sick to death of this country being taken advantage of, and hard working people like myself are paying for it!

[Aslkahuna]

The major problem security wise is that we have absolutely no idea of who is coming over aside from those who are seeking a better life. We know that there are indeed criminals among them for we have captured a goodly number who have committed crimes both here and in their home country and we know that there were some from the Middle East who were stopped in Mexico just prior to 9-11. But the vast hoards who are trampling their way in are causing major damage to the environment in both private and public lands and the mounds of trash they leave behind along with human waste are health issues. The hospitals along the border are failing because they can't afford to treat these people free as they are required to do and so the services for the rest of us are curtailed. This has created a great deal of resentment among US citizens down here-mainly against our government, but unfortunately some day it's likely to spill over into a Border War-especially if AQ comes over that border to attack us. Sadly, most people in the US are not told of what's happening down here by either the media who characterize every illegal as some poor downtrodden soul or by the Government who knows that if they told the truth there would be major backlash against it.

Steve