Thursday, March 24, 2011

13 Mexican Nationals Posing As U.S. Marines Arrested After Crossing Border

Photos: DHS

Driver didn't know birthday of the Marine Corp., criminal complaint alleges.

By H. Nelson Goodson
March 24, 2011

San Diego, CA - On March 14, the U.S. Border Patrol arrested 13 undocumented immigrants from Mexico dressed as U.S. Marines about 55 miles east of San Diego attempting to pass a check point. Two Americans were also arrested along with Mexican nationals at the Campo Border Patrol Westbound I-8 checkpoint. Two of the suspects, Arturo Leyva and Jose Guadalupe Ceja Jr. the van driver wore name tags "Lopez." They were both charged, including Guadalupe Garcia Jr. in a San Diego federal court last week for transporting undocumented immigrants. Leyva, Ceja and Garcia have pleaded not guilty.
The criminal complaint states, the suspects were pick up at a trailer park in the town of Seeley in Imperial County after they crossed the border and were being transported to Los Angeles. Some of the suspects were wearing two different types of camouflage uniforms, desert and urban, which are different shades and odd to be wearing. The government issued license plates they were using were altered, one digit was changed from 0 to an 8 and light reflected differently.
Border Patrol Agent Smith who served in the Marines became suspicious when Ceja failed to answer a question about the actual birth date of the Marine Corp. The suspects were traveling in a phony military van and had stolen plates from the U.S. Marines, according to the complaint.
The Naval Criminal Investigative Service is conducting their own investigation to find out where the suspects got the uniforms.

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