Border Threat List Surprises Georgia Congressman

Posted: 1:04 pm EDT May 3, 2010Updated: 5:35 am EDT May 21, 2010

DOUGLAS, Ariz. -- In the Arizona border town of Douglas, border patrol agents say it's a 24/7 game of cat and mouse. They use cameras, night vision and underground sensors to track and catch illegal immigrants who jump the fence between Mexico and the United States. Channel 2 Action News anchor Justin Farmer rode along with border patrol agents as they caught two men.The agent said it's the second time in four days he's caught one of them. J.D. Hayworth is a former Arizona Congressman. "They catch these guys and release them and a couple of days they are back again. It doesn't solve any problem. It just keeps the backdoor to the U.S. wide open."

WEB EXTRA: People Other Than Mexicans, Including From Terrorist Nations Captured In The Last Two Years
From what Farmer observed in Arizona, the fence in Douglas is easy to jump. It's short and there's no razor wire atop of it. In fact, just a few miles outside of town you can walk into the country. Border officials said the fence is only meant to keep drug smugglers from driving vehicles across the border. The area is the busiest spot in the nation for border patrol. Records show last year, agents caught a quarter of million people trying to enter the U.S. in the Tucson sector alone. According to those documents, a lot are from Mexico or South America, but hundreds of them aren't and are from nations like Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran. Since January, border patrol agents say they have been on the lookout for 23 Somalis with ties to al-Qaida. Jailers released them from a Mexican prison and some law enforcement officials said they think they are headed for the U.S. border.WATCH: Channel 2 Investigates U.S. Border Security Part 1
The U.S. government no longer releases a list of what they call "captured O.T.M.s", which stands for "other than Mexicans". Channel 2 Action News obtained it from a congressional staffer. We showed it to Georgia Congressman Paul Broun, who is on the Homeland Security Committee. He said hadn't seen it before.WATCH: Channel 2 Investigates U.S. Border Security Part 2
"It's shocking to see the number of people from Middle Eastern countries coming in on that list," he said. "I tell you this is something our committee members really need to see. I'd like to have a copy of that list to take with me back to Washington so I can share it." Congressional reports show that Mexican drug cartels tightly control the smuggling of both people and drugs. Law enforcement said they fear the cartels are helping smuggle terrorists and weapons into the U.S.WEB EXTRA: People Other Than Mexicans Currently In Detention In ICE Custody In Florence Arizona Including From Terrorist Countries
Chris Simcox is the co-founder of the citizens group, The Minutemen, which used to patrol the border. He said, "The day after 9/11 we should have sent troops to our border and stopped this illegal immigration and prevented these cartels from growing to the strength that they have. They now control Mexico. They own Mexico."

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