Judge Denies Bail For Former Border Patrol Agent

SAN DIEGO -- A federal judge ruled that a former Border Patrol agent accused of helping to smuggle illegal immigrants into the United States from Mexico is a flight risk and will be held without bail.

Magistrate Judge Anthony Battaglia ruled Wednesday that Oscar Antonio Ortiz, 28, is an illegal immigrant himself, and no amount of bail could ensure his return to court. The temptation for Ortiz to flee to his native Mexico was strong, the judge said.

"You are an illegal alien," Battaglia told the defendant. "You have no right to work here. You have no right to live here."

Ortiz was charged last week with falsely claiming to be a U.S. citizen and conspiring to bring illegal immigrants into the country.

According to court documents, Ortiz is a Mexican citizen who claimed he was born in Chicago to get a job with the Border Patrol.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Jennings told the judge that Ortiz abused his position as a Border Patrol agent by smuggling more than 100 illegal immigrants through his area east of the Tecate Port of Entry.

If convicted on the smuggling charge, Ortiz could face up to five years in prison, the prosecutor said.

Jennings said authorities secretly recorded calls on two cell phones used by Ortiz and a cooperating co-conspirator, referred to in court papers as an unidentified Border Patrol agent.

"The weight of the evidence is very strong," Jennings told the judge.

The defendant first came to the attention of law enforcement during a large-scale narcotics sweep conducted by the North County Regional Gang Task Force.

Agents intercepted hundreds of calls concerning illegal immigrant smuggling, the prosecutor said.

Ortiz was involved with two distinct smuggling organizations, one last fall and one this spring, Jennings told the judge. Ortiz and an unidentified agent were paid either $1,000 or $1,500 for each illegal immigrant brought into the country in the first of the two smuggling operations, the prosecutor alleged.