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Slain border agent's family alleges lies over ATF gun program

(Los Angeles Times) -- The family of slain U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry charged Wednesday that the top federal prosecutor in Phoenix lied to them about the guns found at the crime scene in an attempt to hide the weapons' connection to the ATF's failed Fast and Furious gun-tracking operation.

Terry was killed in December 2010, allegedly by Mexican bandits carrying at least two AK-47 semiautomatic rifles that had been purchased in Arizona as part of Fast and Furious. The operation was intended to catch drug lords using illegal weapons, but the ATF immediately lost track of 1,700 firearms.

The Terry family alleged that then-U.S. Atty. Dennis K. Burke told them last March that the two weapons came from a store in Texas and were not part of Fast and Furious.

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'Blind mules' unknowingly ferry drugs across the U.S.-Mexico border

(CNN) -- Every weekday, Juan Andres drives across the U.S.-Mexico border from his home in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, to the University of Texas at El Paso.

The three-and-a-half-mile commute takes him a world away from a major flashpoint in Mexico's drug cartel war, away from a city with one of the world's highest murder rates.

Andres, who agreed to speak to CNN under the condition that his name was changed, has always been keenly aware of his and his family's safety while living in Juarez.

"The city was already pretty dangerous. We tried not to go to restaurants and things like that where [kidnappings] could happen," he said.

A few years ago, Andres walked away from his career as an optometrist in Mexico to follow his passion: music.

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Another ATF weapons operation comes under scrutiny

FROM THE LOS ANGELES TIMES -- In the late summer of 2010, the ATF agent leading the failed Fast and Furious gun-smuggling operation in Arizona flew to Mexico City to help coordinate cross-border investigations of U.S. weapons used by Mexican drug cartels.

Hope A. MacAllister wanted access to police and military vaults for American weapons recovered by Mexican authorities in raids and at crime scenes. She especially was interested in firearms from another ATF investigation, code-named White Gun, that she was running.

Now members of Congress who have spent months scrutinizing the Fast and Furious debacle are seeking to determine whether White Gun was another weapons investigation gone wrong.

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Houston Chronicle: Innocents duped into drug smuggling

An interesting story recently published in the Houston Chronicle covers a case where the circumstances may sound familiar to some El Pasoans.

An indictment was recenlty dropped against Jose Molina, a bus-riding Mexican citizen headed to Houston.

According to the article, in exchange for a free ride on the bus, which was owned by a relative, Molina ushered two saddles and other cargo through U.S. customs. But hidden inside the saddles was $20,000 worth of cocaine.

Out in El Paso, at least five people - all caught under strikingly similar scripts at the same bridge over the Rio Grande during a 15-month period - were arrested, including one convicted by a jury and two who pleaded guilty in deals to face less prison time.

To read the full story, click here.

Local advocacy center receives law grant for asylum seekers

The Texas Bar Foundation has renewed its grant to Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center in El Paso to provide legal advice and representation to Mexican asylum seekers in El Paso.

News about the grant, which was initially rewarded last year, comes as drug-related violence continues to mount in Mexico. The bar foundation gave Las Americas $27,500 in 2010 and $23,500 this year to the project.

“We are fortunate that the Texas Bar Foundation has recognized the urgency and seriousness of this continuing humanitarian crisis. With this grant, we hope to save lives and instigate positive change in the way the United States government is treating refugees from the Mexican drug war,” said Louie Gilot, Las Americas’ executive director.

The death toll in Juárez currently stands at more than 8,000 since 2008. The city is often called the epicenter of Mexico drug violence.

Gilot, citing government statistics, said the U.S. government is only granting about 5 percent of Mexican asylum cases.

Las Americas offers information, consultations and representation to Mexican nationals seeking asylum.

Among the center's recent clients:

•A rookie Juárez police officer who arrested the “wrong” man;

•A couple so brutally expulsed from their own property that the pregnant wife lost her baby; and

•A teacher who made the “mistake” of talking to his students against drugs.

For more information about Las Americas, visit www.las-americas.org.

Border busts: Man allegedly hides cocaine in waistband; Ecstasy paraphernalia seized

Customs and Border Protection officers this week apprehended a Juárez man who allegedly hid a package of cocaine in the waistband of his pants.

Officers also detained William Ethan Pruden, 32, a Colorado Springs resident, at the Paso del Norte bridge on Thursday. Pruden allegedly possessed drug paraphernalia that tested positive for Ecstasy.

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Pot found in framed pictures of Jesus Christ

(Photos courtesy Customs and Border Protection)

EL PASO -- Customs and Border Protection officers seized over 30 pounds of marijuana hidden in framed pictures of Jesus Christ, CBP spokesman Roger Maier said.

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16-year-old girl, 17-year-old boy arrested in pot smuggling attempts

EL PASO -- Two teen drivers were arrested in separate smuggling attempts at border crossings in El Paso, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said.

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In the photo are packages of marijuana CBP officials say were found in the gas tank of a vehicle driven by a 16-year-old (Courtesy CBP)