Holie Crap.... here's the noon update from KENS 5 and KSAT 12 here in San Antonio.
I'm watching two tv's and was writing as fast as I could.
There were TWO planes forced down in this sting. The second plane was forced down at Bergstrom, AFB in Austin, TX. The only details I got on it was there were three Mexican Nationals and the pilot was also a Mexican Nat'l and the plane left out last night from Laredo, Tx.
On the first plane here in San Antonio, they had an interview with our infamous Hameed Afzal right here in SA! He said that he has been renting this plane out to a certified FAA pilot (no name given) several times over the past few months and would start "doing better back ground checks of the people he rents his planes to".
Mr. Afzal is from Pakistan and his wife is currently being investigated about a website she has threatening the CIA.
Other officials said that the yet unknown pilot was smuggling the Chinese illegals in for around $100,000 a pop and the plane left Eagle Pass, Tx. last night.
Whew..... I think I got it all and if I missssssplled anything, I'm sorry. I still haven't been to bed.
So we didn't catch them as they crossed the border?
Very interesting......
We must have gotten tips from someone.
Doesn't explain the fact that the plane he "rented" was not registered at present. Given that little factoid, I'd say he's full of BS.
"smuggling the Chinese illegals in for around $100,000 a pop "
Whew. Someone with a lot of bucks wants these people in here pretty badly.
There is no Bergstrom AFB, although there was until around 1990 or so. Now the runways are part of the new Austin-Bergstrum Int'l Airport. AFAIK, no military presence there at all, not even Guard or Reserve (It was a reserve only base for many years, flew fighter aircraft, but the squardon, part of the 301st TFW IIRC, was eliminated when the F-4 Phantoms went away. The other Squadron (and the Wing) converted to F-16s at Carswell AFB, (Now JRB NAS Ft. Worth).
$100k is considerably more than a "spot price" I found for smuggling someone by land from Mexico to NY of $5k in the Tuscon Citizen:
"An Arizona prison guard is in federal custody, charged with smuggling illegal immigrants, and has admitted involvement in a smuggling organization, according to federal court records....One of his passengers, who is being held as a material witness, told agents he had paid $3,500 to smugglers and was to pay $1,500 more when he got to New York state."
AZ State prison guard was smuggling immigrants, records say - Tucson Citizen - 5/15/2004
Those four Chinese nationals really wanted to get to their desination within the US BAD without involving the hassles of the domestic airlines.