Protecting American Agriculture from Biological Attack
(05/02/2008)Keeping America safe from unwanted biological pests requires constant vigilance. It also demands strong partnerships between the various specialists who work in this area. This week, CBP and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) officials, industry stakeholders, state plant health officials and private industry representatives had a frank and open discussion on the progress of the coordination and cooperation between CBP’s agriculture programs and USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)—how it’s working and how it can be improved.

Speaking at the conference, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said that the department addressing stakeholder concerns about the agriculture mission by raising its priority level, providing an opportunity for government and industry to share their concerns, and creating a new CBP position to ensure the agriculture mission is not being compromised or distracted. In January 2008, the agency appointed Kevin Harriger as its first-ever Deputy Executive Director, Agriculture Operational Oversight. ( CBP Creates New Position to Protect U.S. Agriculture )

CBP Commissioner W. Ralph Basham addresses agricultural security conference.
 

CBP Assistant Commissioner Thomas Winkowski, office of field operations, said he believes that CBP and APHIS have solid ideas for improving the delivery of the agriculture mission, recognizing best practices and identifying what can work. He quoted Commissioner W. Ralph Basham: “The better we work together, the more we succeed, and the safer our country and our agriculture will be. That’s the goal we share, and that’s what we are all working toward.”

For his part, USDA Secretary Ed Schafer said that the theme of the conference, “Success through Partnership,” is well chosen and he affirmed USDA’s commitment to the partnership with CBP of protecting America’s agricultural resources. Schafer also said that transferring agricultural inspection functions was a good thing. “Although it was not going to be seamless, it was the right move.”
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CBP Seizes More Fake Nike Shoes at LA/Long Beach Seaport

Long Beach, Calif. - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport continue to seize millions of dollars worth of counterfeit Nike footwear. In the latest seizure on May 5, CBP officers confiscated 18,560 pairs of fake Nike athletic shoes and 252 pairs of generic shoes that were put at the tail of the container to conceal the counterfeit Nikes – the scheme didn’t work.

The appraised domestic value of the shipment was $521,000. Had the shoes been legitimate the value would have been $2.6 million. Nike officials advised CBP that they had not authorized the importer or exporter to use their trademark.

Kevin Weeks, director of CBP Los Angeles Field Operations said, "Fiscal year 2008 is shaping up as a record year for CBP seizures of counterfeit goods entering LA/Long Beach seaport. As of mid-year, CBP in the Port of Los Angeles/Long Beach has seized significantly more fake goods than fiscal year 2007, which totaled over $20.6 million worth of counterfeit products."

CBP seizes more than $500,000 worth of counterfeit Nike shoes.
 
In this incident two shipping containers that arrived at the Port of Long Beach from China were selected for CBP examination on May 5. The contents were declared as "drainage pipeline fitting." Following intensive inspection of the shipment CBP officers discovered the counterfeits and seized the goods for federal violation of merchandise bearing a counterfeit trademark. Due to the false manifest, smuggling charges were added to the offense. The shoes were consigned to an importer in New York - likely a fictitious address.

The 18,560 pairs of fake Nike Air Force 1 ‘07 and Air Jordan 4 shoes will be destroyed.
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U. S. Customs and Border Protection Officers Seize Date-Rape Drug

(Monday, May 05, 2008)

Lewiston, N.Y. – U.S. Customs and Border Protection today announced the seizure of 21 vials of Gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB) and the arrest of two Canadian citizens.

On May 2, CBP officers encountered Adam Genge-Narain, an 18-year-old Canadian citizen from Toronto, Ontario, who was accompanied by a 17-year-old Canadian citizen as they applied for admission into the United States at the Lewiston-Queenston border crossing in Lewiston, N. Y. Genge-Narain, advised the primary CBP officer that they were enroute to shop at local stores. Additional questioning raised the suspicion of the CBP officer, and the subjects were referred for an enforcement exam.

An examination of the vehicle yielded a small plastic baggie hidden underneath the rear passenger seat. Inside the plastic bag were 21 small vials containing a clear liquid. The clear liquid field-tested positive for GHB.

GHB is a synthetic depressant produced in clandestine labs. While available as a prescription for sleep disorders in some countries, GHB was banned in the U.S. by the Food and Drug Administration in 1990 because of the dangers associated with its use. It has been used by body builders to stimulate muscle growth. In recent years it has become popular as a recreational drug among young adults at dance clubs and “raves”. GHB is odorless and nearly tasteless. In certain doses, GHB can render a victim incapable of resisting advances, and is commonly referred to as a “date-rape” drug.

Both subjects were arrested for possession of narcotics and turned over to the New York State Police for prosecution by the District Attorney’s Office. "This interception of GHB has prevented a very dangerous drug from reaching our streets," said James T. Engleman, Director of Field Operations for the Buffalo Field Office, "This seizure exhibits CBP Officers’ continued vigilance and is a further example of how they protect our nation and its citizen’s everyday."
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Border Patrol Intercepts 61 Smuggled Mexicans Aboard Tractor-Trailer

(Tuesday, May 06, 2008)

Campo, Calif. - U.S. Border Patrol agents prevented a human smuggling attempt Saturday in Campo, Calif., discovering 61 Mexican nationals in the back of a tractor-trailer.

At approximately 9:15 p.m., Border Patrol agents from San Diego sector discovered the illegal aliens aboard a tractor-trailer during a vehicle stop on eastbound Interstate Highway 8 near Kitchen Creek Road exit. Upon stopping the tractor-trailer, Border Patrol agents interviewed the driver, who was found to be in the U.S. illegally. A Border Patrol service detector dog alerted to the tractor-trailer which led agents to search the cargo area. Agents found 61 subjects hidden behind bales of cardboard. All subjects were found to be illegally present in the U.S.

Border Patrol agents arrested the driver, a 29-year-old male Mexican national, and charged him with alien smuggling. The tractor-trailer was seized.

Through the mobility and rapid deployment of agents and resources, the Border Patrol upholds the objectives to detect, apprehend and deter smugglers of humans, drugs and other contraband.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.