Anonymous - 2-2-2005 at 06:10 PM
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/mexico/tijuana/20050202-9...
By Anna Cearley
February 2, 2005
TIJUANA ? An American man and two Iraqis arrested at the Tijuana airport last week have been charged with immigration violations, according to Mexican
authorities.
A Mexican federal judge will determine whether to dismiss the charges or proceed with a trial. The men are being held at a state prison in Tijuana.
The three flew to Tijuana from Mexico City Jan. 26 on an Aeromexico flight, but they were stopped by Mexican immigration authorities who inspected
their documents, according to Mexican authorities.
The Iraqis ? later identified as Steven Yohanan Kurkis and Kaml Meti Bashar ? showed passports from Greece under the names of Nikolaos Skarvelis and
Nabil Megalli, according to a news release from the Mexican Attorney General's Office.
The American, Samer Toma Oraha, showed an expired U.S. passport with his name on it, according to the release.
An initial investigation determined that the Iraqi citizens traveled from Greece to Spain and then to Mexico, according to Mexican authorities. Oraha,
identified as their contact in Mexico City, was going to take them to the United States for about $10,000 each, according to Mexican authorities.
The Baja California border is a popular crossing point for Iraqi Chaldeans, who typically seek asylum in the United States. It was unclear whether the
detained men were Chaldeans. Mexican authorities have been targeting smuggling rings that bring Middle Easterners through the border.