Border Patrol agents address Forks City Council about ‘huge national puzzle’
Port Angeles Border Patrol station supervisor Jose Romero discusses U.S. Customs and Border Protection policy with the Forks City Council. -- Photo by Lonnie Archibald/for Peninsula Daily News
No comment on ‘black hole’ comment
By Rob Ollikainen
Peninsula Daily News
FORKS — After making a presentation about Border Patrol operations at the Forks City Council meeting on Monday, Port Angeles Field Operations Supervisor Rafael Cano said he was not authorized to discuss the agent who described the station as a “black hole.”
Agent Christian Sanchez made allegations that there is little work and “no purpose, no mission” at the Port Angeles station to a Washington, D.C., open-government group July 29.
Sanchez has been working at the offices at the Richard B. Anderson Federal Building in downtown Port Angeles, headquarters for Border Patrol operations on the North Olympic Peninsula.
When asked if Sanchez still works there, Cano said: “We cannot discuss Mr. Sanchez’s employment status.”
“I cannot discuss it because all of it is under investigation,” he said.
Cano said the Blaine Sector of the Border Patrol, which includes the Peninsula, and the federal Customs and Border Protection office “will address, immediately, any allegations of misconduct by any of our agents.”
“We will address them accordingly and swiftly,” Cano said.
Cano and fellow station supervisor Jose Romero outlined the agency’s mission on the Peninsula and across the nation in a presentation requested by the Forks City Council.
Members of the public addressed the Border Patrol agents before the talk, but the agents did not respond in their prepared remarks to the council.
Forks Human Rights Group, a critic of the Border Patrol’s expanded presence on the West End, will make a counter-presentation at the next Forks City Council meeting Monday, Aug. 22.
“I know this isn’t a direct dialogue yet, but at the same time, I think this is a step in moving toward that direction,” Forks Mayor Bryon Monohon said.
Monohon said the citizens group will discuss interactions between the Border Patrol and West End residents, particularly the Hispanic community, “that for one reason or another aren’t going as well as they should.”
Community forums with both sides are tentatively planned but have not been scheduled, Monohon said.
The local Hispanic community rallied last spring in a massive three-week search for Benjamin Roldan Salinas.
Roldan Salinas, a 43-year-old forest worker who was in the country illegally, eluded Border Patrol agents by jumping into a frigid, rain-swollen Sol Duc River on May 14.
His body was discovered four miles downstream June 4.
The agents did not discuss Roldan Salinas during the presentation.
“Anytime you have a casualty, have somebody lose a life, it’s a big deal, regardless of color and creed,” Monohon said.
“If there’s a loss of life, we have to be looking in the mirror and say, ‘What happened?’”
Monohon added that the Border Patrol has a job to do and a mandate.
“I’ve got a good working relationship with the Border Patrol myself,” Monohon said.
“I didn’t hear anything last night that changed my perception. It’s a tough job.”
By Rob Ollikainen
Peninsula Daily News
FORKS — After making a presentation about Border Patrol operations at the Forks City Council meeting on Monday, Port Angeles Field Operations Supervisor Rafael Cano said he was not authorized to discuss the agent who described the station as a “black hole.”
Agent Christian Sanchez made allegations that there is little work and “no purpose, no mission” at the Port Angeles station to a Washington, D.C., open-government group July 29.
Sanchez has been working at the offices at the Richard B. Anderson Federal Building in downtown Port Angeles, headquarters for Border Patrol operations on the North Olympic Peninsula.
When asked if Sanchez still works there, Cano said: “We cannot discuss Mr. Sanchez’s employment status.”
“I cannot discuss it because all of it is under investigation,” he said.
Cano said the Blaine Sector of the Border Patrol, which includes the Peninsula, and the federal Customs and Border Protection office “will address, immediately, any allegations of misconduct by any of our agents.”
“We will address them accordingly and swiftly,” Cano said.
Cano and fellow station supervisor Jose Romero outlined the agency’s mission on the Peninsula and across the nation in a presentation requested by the Forks City Council.
Members of the public addressed the Border Patrol agents before the talk, but the agents did not respond in their prepared remarks to the council.
Forks Human Rights Group, a critic of the Border Patrol’s expanded presence on the West End, will make a counter-presentation at the next Forks City Council meeting Monday, Aug. 22.
“I know this isn’t a direct dialogue yet, but at the same time, I think this is a step in moving toward that direction,” Forks Mayor Bryon Monohon said.
Monohon said the citizens group will discuss interactions between the Border Patrol and West End residents, particularly the Hispanic community, “that for one reason or another aren’t going as well as they should.”
Community forums with both sides are tentatively planned but have not been scheduled, Monohon said.
The local Hispanic community rallied last spring in a massive three-week search for Benjamin Roldan Salinas.
Roldan Salinas, a 43-year-old forest worker who was in the country illegally, eluded Border Patrol agents by jumping into a frigid, rain-swollen Sol Duc River on May 14.
His body was discovered four miles downstream June 4.
The agents did not discuss Roldan Salinas during the presentation.
“Anytime you have a casualty, have somebody lose a life, it’s a big deal, regardless of color and creed,” Monohon said.
“If there’s a loss of life, we have to be looking in the mirror and say, ‘What happened?’”
Monohon added that the Border Patrol has a job to do and a mandate.
“I’ve got a good working relationship with the Border Patrol myself,” Monohon said.
“I didn’t hear anything last night that changed my perception. It’s a tough job.”
By Rob Ollikainen
Peninsula Daily News
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“We’re going to continue to enforce the laws as they’re written on the books,” Field Operations Supervisor Rafael Cano said.
“We’re going to do so because Congress said they wanted us to do so. We’ve been mandated by Congress to do so.”
Cano and station supervisor Jose Romero gave a “Customs and Border Protection 101” presentation at the request of the council.
“We’re very interested in developing partnerships,” Cano said.
“We work very closely with multiple local, state, federal and tribal agencies.”
Councilman Kevin Hinchen asked the agents if they target members of particular nationalities.
“I’ve arrested people of all shades and nationalities, I can assure you of that,” said Cano, who arrived in Port Angeles four years ago after patrolling the southern border near Tucson, Ariz.
“When we talk about partnerships, it’s not just about finding illegal immigrants,” Romero said.
“It’s not just about finding terrorists. But we also deal with narcotics. That’s part of our authority. It’s any type of contraband.”
After the attacks of 9/11, terrorism came to the forefront of the Department of Homeland Security agency’s mission, Romero said.
“Terrorism is a threat, and I understand it’s not something that we see here daily or weekly, monthly or yearly,” he said.
“With terrorism, it’s not a Johnny-come-lately. It’s not what happened recently. One act of terrorism is one too many.”
Romero cited the case of Ahmed Ressam, who was arrested in Port Angeles after he arrived aboard the MV Coho ferry from Victoria in a rental car loaded with bomb-making materials Dec. 14, 1999, on his way to bomb Los Angeles International Airport on Jan. 1, 2000.
In 2008, traffic checkpoints sparked outrage from local groups that protested the immigration checks.
“Where I come from, that’s a vital part of what we do,” said Romero, who arrived in Port Angeles from El Paso, Texas, in October.
“And I understand that some people may consider that to be an inconvenience, but when we talk about the safety and security, we’re not talking about just the safety and security of any one small community.
“Our community is nationwide, and even one weak link is one too many.”
The agents did not respond to critics who testified before the presentation.
Manuela Vasquez of Forks said she told her family to stop speaking their native language in public for fear of being harassed by immigration officials.
“Is it safe to speak Spanish anymore in the community?” Vasquez asked. “I’m not sure anymore.”
Francisca Velasquez of Forks expressed concerns over racial profiling.
“I’ve had students that come to me occasionally and say that they have been questioned by Border Patrol, and all these students are brown,” Velasquez said.
_______
Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at rob.ollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com
Last modified: August 09. 2011 11:53PM
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