Anonymous - 1-5-2005 at 06:12 PM
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20050105-1413-ca-ch...
January 5, 2005
SAN DIEGO ? Border inspectors found a 10-year-old Mexican girl wedged behind the dashboard of a passenger car while being smuggled into the United
States, officials said Wednesday.
The girl was found Dec. 31 inside a Toyota Camry attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border at the San Ysidro Port of Entry, the world's busiest
border crossing that links San Diego and Tijuana, Mexico.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents discovered the child when they noticed a person's leg under the passenger seat. Officers worked for 30
minutes to free her. The girl appeared to be in good condition.
Two U.S. citizens in the vehicle, a 17-year-old male residing in Tijuana and a 47-year-old woman from Chula Vista, were jailed for attempted
smuggling.
Customs officers contacted the child's parents in Mexico and subsequently paroled the girl and her mother to federal custody to act as witnesses.
Vince Bond, a Customs spokesman, declined to provide further details, citing the ongoing investigation.
The number of undocumented minors apprehended crossing into in California from Mexico rose to 6,478 in fiscal 2004, up almost 17 percent over the
previous year, according to Customs.
In November, a 5-year old girl was found hidden inside a pinata in the back seat of a car at the San Ysidro Port of Entry.