 |
|
|
 News from Around the Americas | February 2007 
Border Police Nab Migrant in Car Dashboard
 Reuters
| | A van was stopped at the US-Mexico border on August 8, 2006 where police discovered 3 people sewn into the upholstery of the seats. |
U.S. border inspectors found an undocumented Chinese immigrant wedged into the dashboard of a car crossing from Mexico, U.S. authorities said on Tuesday.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said inspectors found the 40-year-old man crammed into the dash of a Mercury Sable mid-size car during a routine inspection at the Calexico port of entry in southern California on Saturday.
"Inspectors referred the vehicle for secondary inspection after the driver gave inconsistent answers to their questions," Vince Bond, the CBP spokesman in San Diego, said by telephone.
"They discovered a specially constructed compartment underneath the dashboard area of the car and officers using a mirror could see part of a man's foot exposed," he added.
Bond said inspectors ripped the dashboard open to release the unnamed Chinese. He was subsequently arrested along with the driver, a 53-year-old U.S. citizen.
The discovery was the latest of a growing number of attempts to smuggle undocumented immigrants concealed in car seats, engine compartments and even gas tanks in a bid to beat tighter border security on the southwest border.
"Deep concealment is on the rise as security gets tighter," Bond said.
"It's no longer a matter of hiding people under a dark blanket in the back of a minivan." |
| |
|
Vallarta Weddings
Tell a Friend
Site Map
Print this Page
Email Us