FBI arrest corrupt CBP border officer at San Diego border

A San Diego CBP officer was arrested while on duty and charged with wire fraud and concealing a person from arrest. The FBI Border Corruption Task Force (BCTF) arrested CBP Officer Thomas Silva, a nine-year veteran at the San Ysidro Port of Entry without incident. The complaint alleges that in April 2012, Silva knowingly allowed Julio Cesar Landaverde Valdez, a federal fugitive, to enter the United States from Mexico through the San Ysidro Port. Federal agents said Landaverde Valdez, who is the defendant’s brother-in-law, was convicted for illegal alien smuggling in 2006. Daphne Hearn, Special Agent in Charge of the San Diego FBI Office said, “Silva was arrested pursuant to a federal arrest warrant based upon a complaint filed with the United States District Court, Southern District of California. The complaint charges Silva with wire fraud and concealing a person from arrest.” The multi-agency task force acted on suspicious behavior by other CBP officers. “The BCTF investigation was initiated in November 2010, after the CBP detected irregularities with Silva’s work. Specifically, the CBP reported that Silva was allowing individuals with imposter immigration documents to pass through the San Ysidro Port of Entry.” A subsequent investigation by the BCTF revealed that Silva was involved in a variety of criminal activity. Prosecutors also revealed that Silva could face an avalanche of other charges, included drug and human smuggling as well as tax evasion stemming from the government’s thorough two-year investigation. The complaint also contends that Silva engaged in a plot to “defraud Farmers Insurance Company by filing a false claim concerning the theft of his personal vehicle. Silva was paid $7,329 as a result of this false claim.” Silva was booked into the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), and yesterday, U.S. Magistrate Judge William V. Gallo, set bond at $50,000. The judge also ordered the bond be backed by Silva’s family home and he will be required to wear an electronic tracking device. For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/county-political-buzz-in-san-diego/guns-fuel-drug-cartels-mexico © Copyright 2012 Kimberly Dvorak All Rights Reserved.