DHS aims to stop flow of illegal arms with binational initative

In recent years, illegal gun trade through cities in South Texas to those in northern Mexico has thrived, providing weapons to warring drug cartels.

The Department of Homeland Security responded to that trend this week and introduced a binational initiative to curb the flow of arms.

The program, called Armas Cruzadas, or Smuggled Arms, will emphasize real-time information sharing between law enforcement officials in both countries.

The initiative comes after a two-year period in which arms trafficking has increased along the border - especially in the Rio Grande Valley. These weapons tend to wind up in the hands of warring drug cartels.

"We've been seeing a lot of smuggling in Brownsville and McAllen," said Rob Elder, assistant special agent in charge at the Houston field division of the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms. "As drug-related violence picked up, (smuggled) weapons increased across the border."

The Armas Cruzadas program was announced in Houston on Monday by Julie Myers, an assistant secretary for DHS.

"Faced with an explosive, high-caliber threat, we knew we needed an equally effective, high-caliber response to thwart the illegal export of weapons into Mexico," Myers said.

Recent cases in Brownsville's district court have shed light on the inner workings of arms trafficking operations - some of which are organized by men and women in their early 20s, who are paid in cash and drugs. In a May case, two Brownsville natives, Ricardo and Gerardo Silva, were accused of hiring several men and women to deliver guns to a contact in Matamoros.

Some of the firearms the Silva brothers and their recruits allegedly purchased were "Five-Seven" pistols, known for their ability to fire bullets through armored vests. Elder called these "weapons of choice" for Mexican drug cartels.

Antonio O. Garza, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico, called Armas Cruzadas an attempt "to undercut criminal violence in Mexico and the border region."

The program comes as the Bush administration is seeking to galvanize congressional and public support for a $500 million anti-drug aid package to Mexico.

Armas Cruzadas will complement current U.S.-led initiatives, like ATF's Operation Gunrunner, which referred 465 defendants for prosecution in 2007.

ksieff@brownsvilleherald.com