Contributed Article/Courtesy U.S. Customs and Border Protection
SAN DIEGO – U.S. Border Patrol San Diego Sector’s (SDC) Foreign Operations Branch (FOB) coordinated with the Government of Mexico (GOM) to rescue a kidnapped child.
According to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD), on May 4, 2021, 4-year-old United States citizen Kamilo Fuentes Sanders was kidnapped from an East Los Angeles location by his mother.
On May 5, 2021, LASD contacted San Diego Sector’s FOB for assistance in recovering Sanders. FOB initiated contact with their GOM counterparts. The Instituto Nacional de Migracion (INM) and the Guardia Estatal de Seguridad e Investigación (GESI) conducted surveillance patrols at transportation hubs and in the city streets in Tijuana, Mexico.
After weeks of investigative work by GoM, the child and mother were located and taken into custody in Tijuana. FOB then coordinated with the CBP Office of Field Operations, INM, and GESI to turn them over to LASD at the San Ysidro Port of Entry and return Sanders to his legal guardians.
“This is a prime example of the binational coordination and cooperation between the Government of Mexico and our agency,” said U.S. Border Patrol San Diego Sector Chief Patrol Agent Aaron Heitke, “As a result of this joint effort, this child has been safely returned home.”
