Border Patrol agents’ main duty is to protect our borders and national security. But did you know that Border Patrol agents’ work is far more complex and connected to our daily life than you might imagine?
That’s because as a law enforcement entity, Border Patrol is part of a nationwide network that comprises law enforcement task forces with different missions across the country. Border Patrol agents, for example, are part of the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Forces, Violent Crime Task Forces, and Violent Gang Task Forces. Border Patrol agents are involved in the work of Drug and Enforcement Agency, local and state police joint groups, and other national security groups inside and outside the Department of Homeland Security, which Border Patrol falls under.
This kind of joint cooperation makes the work of law enforcement more efficient by pulling together resources and expertise from each agency while also exposing officers to the work of their peers in other agencies so they can learn from one another.
“Border Patrol Agents have served on various task forces throughout the country for decades” said AFGE’s very own Border Patrol Agent and National Vice President for District 7 Jason Anderson, who was part of the DHS Alliance Human Trafficking Task Force before he was elected NVP last year. “While serving on these task forces, Border Patrol Agents share their expertise, while also learning new skills from law enforcement partners as we work together to protect the country.”
NVP Anderson was the lead investigator in a child pornography case in which a Michigan man was recently convicted and was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison.
As the lead investigator, NVP Anderson was heavily involved in acquiring evidence and interviewing witnesses for an investigation centering around a 16-year-old girl who was coerced into producing explicit photos and videos of herself and another minor female victim – the teen’s younger sister. The convicted, Michael McShan, also enticed the girl into running away and staying with him in a house where the abuse continued. After McShan, 28, was sent to jail, NVP Anderson caught him directing another victim and witness to falsely confess to the crime in order to get himself released on bond pending his trial.
After release, he will remain on supervised release for the rest of his life.
“I’m immensely proud of the collaborative effort between Border Patrol agents and [Homeland Security Investigation] agents that led to the conviction of this man who committed heinous crimes,” said Chief Patrol Agent R. Alan Booth of Detroit Sector Border Patrol. “Our mission encompasses many factors but protecting the communities we live in is always our priority.”
“It took two years to get this done,” said NVP Anderson, who has served as a Border Patrol Agent for more than 12 years. “It’s the pinnacle of my career.”
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