LAREDO, TEXAS HOSTS ANNUAL LAW ENFORCEMENT SUMMIT - APRIL 3,

UNCLAS NUEVO LAREDO 000087


EMBASSY FOR MCCA, POL, RSO
DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/MEX, CA/P, CASC
MONTERREY FOR PAO

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ASEC CASC CMGT KPAO MX
SUBJECT: LAREDO, TEXAS HOSTS ANNUAL LAW ENFORCEMENT SUMMIT - APRIL 3,
2009


1. The city of Laredo, Texas its annual Law Enforcement Summit
on Friday, April 3, 2009. Participation was limited to American
law enforcement authorities and civil authorities.
Presentations were made by the Laredo Police Department, Webb
County Sheriff, U.S. Border Patrol, DHS/CBP, FBI, Texas
Department of Public Safety, and others. Congressman Henry
Cuellar also made remarks. Although the meeting was held in
Texas and included no participants from Mexico, it dealt
primarily with the community's concern over drug cartel
operations in Nuevo Laredo and the growing influence of Mexican
narcotics traffickers in Texas, potential for spillover violence
to the U.S. side of the border, and the need for more resources,
mostly federal, to deal with smuggling, arms trafficking, and
narco violence. The meeting coincided with the visit later that
day of DHS Secretary Napolitano. The meeting was also
overshadowed by the ongoing case of two missing, presumed
kidnapped, Laredo teens in Nuevo Laredo and the apparent murder
of another U.S. citizen in Nuevo Laredo.


2. In his opening remarks, Laredo's Mayor described a community
hit by two recent major developments, the devaluation of the
Mexican peso and the economic downturn in the United States.
Both resulted in fewer Mexican nationals visiting Laredo. The
Mayor said that the city has already lost over six million US
dollars in bridge toll revenues due to the decreased number of
visitors from Mexico. The Mayor and City Manager reiterated
their commitment to keeping public security a priority. The
Mayor continued by reporting that during a recent visit to
Washington, D.C., he and other city officials pressed federal
officials for a sustainable full-time force at the international
bridges, including agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco
and Firearms (ATF),and for more federal funding to combat car
thefts and to enhance detection of currency smuggled into
Mexico. Most importantly, he explained the need for more boots
on the ground and investment in the frontline to allow existing
laws to be enforced on the border before they are amended in
Washington.


3. The city of Laredo reported that in 2006 and 2007
respectively, approximately 1,400 felony immigration cases were
prosecuted. That number rose to 1,800 in 2008, and as a result
of a recent spike, the number for 2009 should reach 2,200.
Similarly, the number of federal drug cases rose from 374 in
2007 to an anticipated 600 for 2009.


4. FBI Laredo reported on its recent meetings with Post's RSO
and consular officers on recent missing persons cases, including
the case of two female teenagers that was the major event of the
week. The FBI spokesperson said that his agency expects a rise
in the number of kidnappings for ransom in Nuevo Laredo, which
he described as being very profitable and will enable the
cartels to continue to raise funds to corrupt officials and
purchase weapons. He claimed that there is evidence that more
and more cartel members and their families live in the U.S.
which they view as a safe haven, but also provides the USG
better opportunities to prosecute. The FBI reported a spike in
kidnappings in the Rio Grande Valley, with 13 kidnappings
reported in 2008. The spokesman reported that there are greater
efforts on the part of the cartels to compromise U.S. federal
officials as the border tightens. Corruption efforts begin, he
said, when the US official is approached by a family member,
friend or former associate seeking assistance, and he ended by
claiming that many US officials in the past have sold themselves
cheaply. The FBI said that the counter-terrorism threat for the
area is based on what and who comes across the border from
Mexico. The area's international bridges would be an especially
attractive terrorist target because of their importance to the
U.S. national economy. He said that there is no evidence of
radical Muslim activities or recruitment in the area. He
confirmed that FBI is seeing more Cubans reaching the area via
Mexico and that some are members of Cuban organized crime. He
said it is likely that Cuban intelligence officers are among
them as well.


5. The presentation by ATF highlighted current trends in the
Laredo/Nuevo Laredo area. His agency is making a big push to
counter arms smuggling from the U.S. into Mexico. Fortunately,
he said, Laredo is not a source city for illegal firearms
entering Mexico, but remains a major gateway for the
introduction of weapons into Mexico. ATF expects additional
manpower resources will be allocated to support gun running
interdiction initiatives. The ATF spokesperson predicted a
temporary increase in violent crime in the area but said that
increases in federal funding in Laredo will help pay overtime to
Laredo police and result in improved intelligence gathering and
arrests.


6. The DHS/CBP Laredo Port Director reported that so far in
2009, over nine million US dollars have been seized from
currency smugglers. He said that this amount is only what his
officers have seized, and does not include an unknown number of
seizures conducted by the Webb County Sheriff and Laredo police
department. He reported that in 2008, the POE seized just over
two million dollars.


7. In his remarks, Congressman Henry Cuellar discussed his
efforts to fund a border security institute in Laredo, which
will provide training to DHS/ICE and other state, local and
federal law enforcement personnel. The institute, which will
probably be housed at the Texas A&M International University in
Laredo, will also include a federal law enforcement
communications center. He said that he expects National Guard
elements to be deployed in Laredo by September, 2009. He
praised Mexico for what he described as its new paradigm, that
it is now seeking assistance to help locate and combat the drug
cartels.


8. A final presentation was made by the Laredo Police
Department and a representative from the Laredo Visitor's
Bureau. Speaking about the impact of national media coverage on
Laredo, they claimed that Laredo's Mayor received over 1,500
pieces of hate mail following a recent appearance on a
television talk show in which he tried to defend Mexico and
praised President Calderon's efforts to combat the cartels.
They claimed that the national media paints an unrealistic
picture of the border and that it is not interested in
presenting factual information. They claimed that when people
like the mayor attempt to explain the realities of border life,
the media is disinterested or does not care because it does not
serve their mission, which they described as self-serving and
motivated by selling advertising time. They stated that their
experience with the national media demonstrated that it is not
really serving community interests. The presenters claimed that
the real issue, in their opinion, was a national fear of
immigration and a loss of what they described as the traditional
American way of life.


9. Comments: The 2009 Laredo Law Enforcement Summit brought
every level of US law enforcement together in one session to
share information and success stories. The meeting coincided
with the visit of DHS Secretary Napolitano to Laredo later that
afternoon, and many of the participants were at an event for her
immediately following the conclusion of the law enforcement
meeting. The Laredo community remains concerned about the
possibility of spillover violence and seeks additional federal
funding of local, state and federal agencies to support their
efforts to control the border. The meeting might have been more
profitable had Mexican counterparts been permitted to observe.
The session was closed to the public and the media, although
selected media were allowed to enter the conference room at one
point to ask questions of willing participants.


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