Por Esto (Merida, Yucatan)  10/28/09

"Mordida", a favorite extortion and bribe in Mexico

In Cancun, Mexico, police stopped a driver, a visiting tourist, for an alleged "administrative violation." Then they asked the tourist for up to $300 dollars so she could proceed without having a penalty issued to her. It turned out that the victim of this extortion was Michelle Fischbach, a state senator from Minnesota, who later presented a written complaint to the local authorities regarding the episode.

Five Cancun "Tourist Police" officers are now under investigation for their personal attempt at extortion.  "Mordida" (a "bite") is a common Mexican expression meaning an under-the-table payment made to extract a bribe from any official in order to avoid a higher penalty or to expedite a formal bureaucratic process.

"A small catalog of worrisome things"  Full transl. of Roman Revueltas' op/col by that title.

"What can we do: we are what we are. Half the country doesn't function. The Guadalajara plays badly. So does the America. [Author refers here to two soccer teams] The government is inefficient and obstructive. The unions don't strive on behalf of their workers but seek on behalf of their leaders. The parties don't work for the citizens but attend to their own interests.

Pine Valley, Calif. - For the second time this week, U.S. Border Patrol agents have made a significant cocaine seizure. The seizures have netted more than 100 pounds of cocaine, valued at more than $1 million.

The latest seizure occurred today at about 7 a.m., when a Chevy Silverado pickup truck arrived at the Border Patrol checkpoint inspection on westbound Interstate 8 near Pine Valley, Calif. The driver, a 33-year-old Mexican national, who was a legal resident, was directed to a secondary inspection area, where a Border Patrol K-9 team conducted an exterior search on the pickup truck. The Border Patrol K-9 alerted on the vehicle, prompting agents to investigate further.

Agents discovered modified compartments within the rear quarter panels of the vehicle that contained 25 wrapped bundles of cocaine. The cocaine weighed more than 71 pounds and has an estimated street value of more than $710,000.

Earlier in the week, Border Patrol agents seized more than 38 pounds of cocaine hidden in the dashboard of a Ford Freestar minivan, which was traveling northbound on Interstate 15 in Temecula, Calif. Two suspected smugglers were arrested.

The three suspected smugglers and the narcotics from both incidents were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

The U.S. Border Patrol deploys coordinated enforcement operations and interior checkpoints as part of a defense-in-depth enforcement approach.

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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