Pubdate: Fri, 12 Mar 2010
Source: New York Times (NY)
Copyright: 2010 The New York Times Company
Page: A12 of the New York edition
Contact:  http://www.nytimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/298
Author: Randal C. Archibold
Referenced: Hired by Customs, but Working for the Cartels 
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v09/n1128/a09.html
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topic/homeland+security
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topic/Border+Patrol

U.S. FALTERS IN SCREENING BORDER PATROL NEAR MEXICO

Federal anticorruption investigators continue to struggle to keep up 
with the screening of newly hired United States law enforcement 
officers working on the Mexican border and have fallen far behind in 
checking current employees as well, federal officials testified on Thursday.

The testimony came during a hearing in Washington before a 
subcommittee of the Senate Homeland Security Committee on rising 
corruption among the ranks of federal law enforcement officers who 
patrol the border and guard ports of entry.

Representatives from the F.B.I. and the Department of Homeland 
Security painted a grave picture of drug trafficking organizations 
trying to recruit federal officers to work for them and infiltrate the ranks.

Although the vast majority of officers do not betray their jobs, the 
corruption problem, said Kevin L. Perkins, an F.B.I. agent who helps 
supervise corruption investigations, "is significantly pervasive."

Internal affairs officials from the Department of Homeland Security 
said that the rapid post-9/11 growth of Customs and Border Protection 
- -- the agency has swelled in recent years to more than 41,000 
frontline border agents and officers -- has meant that not all new 
hires are thoroughly vetted.

Polygraph examinations, which officials call an important tool to 
help weed out bad hires, were administered to about 15 percent of 
applicants by the end of 2009.

That was an increase from the 10 percent of the previous year, but 
made possible only because hiring slowed for the first time in several years.

James F. Tomsheck, who is in charge of internal affairs for Customs 
and Border Protection, said that about 60 percent of candidates 
failed the test and were turned away, including some who officials 
believed had ties to criminal organizations.

Senator Mark Pryor, an Arkansas Democrat and chairman of the 
subcommittee that held the hearing, described the failure rate as 
"alarming to me."

"It is to me, too, sir," Mr. Tomsheck replied.

He said the agency had 31 polygraph examiners but needed 50 more to 
reach a goal of screening all new hires.

In addition, he said, the agency is far behind in conducting periodic 
background checks of current law enforcement employees.

He also proposed giving periodic polygraph examinations to those 
employees but said that Congressional authorization and financing 
would be needed.

Mr. Pryor pledged to help, saying, "We are on very dangerous ground 
here with this corruption."

The hearing was called in response to an article in The New York 
Times in December about drug organizations making efforts to 
infiltrate the ranks of border enforcement, said Lisa Ackerman, a 
spokeswoman for Mr. Pryor. 
- ---
MAP posted-by: Richard Lake