All language subtitles for Border.Force.Americas.Gatekeepers.S07E04.1080p.WEB.h264-CODSWALLOP[EZTVx.to]

Hi, how's it going?

¿Cómo andamos?

Every day, unofficial couriers called
acateros carry goods across the southern

border. They can earn anywhere from
$1,500 to $100,000 in a single day.

But with a big paycheck comes a major
risk, because they rarely know what

they're transporting.

In Eagle Park... Yeah, we'll just stick
it up here, man.

Officers are carrying out a spot check
on a courier's truck heading from the U

.S. into Mexico.

It's really weird, dude.

Oh, is it?

Because criminal gangs are known to hide
money and guns in the cargo,

officers conduct an X-ray.

We tried to get everything because we
never know.

They might have something hiding in one
of the boxes.

Prevo!

The X-ray has revealed something of
interest.

Yeah, we got one.

So right now, we're scanning the
commodities from this guy's truck, and

there appears to be a rifle in the
speaker box right here.

No, no, it's a...

Tens of thousands of assault rifles are
trafficked from the U.S. each year by

Mexican drug cartel.

There's going to be other stuff in here,
Matt.

The search is just getting started.

Okay.

Let's take the last one.

What is this, dude?

We always have to stay vigilant.

The bad guys lost today.

Over 3,000 pedestrians use the Progresso
International Bridge every day.

Customs and Border Protection officers
are on constant alert for one of the

criminals attempting to cross the
border.

Today, a man traveling to Mercedes,
Texas, has been flagged as having an

active arrest warrant.

He's immediately detained.

We can go with the handcuffs. Okay.

Left.

Officers don't yet have any details of
the man's alleged crime.

Have you been arrested before?

Yeah, I always get flagged because I'm
on bail.

But they never done did.

But I do have one.

That's what I'm looking for.

Okay.

Despite his claims of ignorance, it's
soon confirmed the man's prints are a

match.

Public records reveal that he is wanted
for stalking and harassment.

You have a warrant for offense,
stalking, felony warrant, harassment,

communication.

What's that?

I don't know. Maybe you were contacting
somebody you're not supposed to contact.

Do you know anything about that? Do you
have a protection order or anything like

that? No. Well, that's what it's for.

Can you get more information on that?

It's what it is. I don't have any more
information, okay? So just relax.

There's a restroom right there. Let me
know if you need anything, okay?

Thank you.

Although the man claims to know nothing
about any recent crime, Officer Pena

isn't so sure.

I believe he has probably been
contacting somebody that has a

protection order against him or somebody
that doesn't want to be contacted by

him. Since the man's already on bail for
a separate offense, if the charges are

confirmed by the issuing precinct, he
could soon be going back to jail.

An eagle path.

Yeah, we got one.

An x-ray of a courier's truck has
revealed what looks like a weapon hidden

inside a speaker cabinet.

Let's take the last one.

What is this, dude?

This guy's got one, too.

Hook him up, man.

This pocket tarot.

who might be unknowingly transporting
illegal goods, is detained with his wife

and son.

Every year, around 150,000 American-made

guns are smuggled from the U.S. into
Mexico, where they can sell for up to

four times more on the Mexican black
market.

But this driver claims he had no idea
what he was carrying or who it was for.

With the man in custody, officers check
the speaker cabinet.

We're going to open it to see what they
have.

And based on the images that we got, it
seems like there's some weapons in

there.

The search reveals suspicious objects
covered in tape in both speakers.

There is what appears to be a weapon
that is wrapped in duct tape. It's

concealed within the commodity, but it's
not secured, so it's bouncing around. So

if we physically picked it up, we'd
probably feel something moving around.

So in terms of this, it's not a very
good concealment method.

And this is the same thing. It's wrapped
with duct tape and is thrown in the

speaker box.

The second

package

contains ammunition.

This is two fully loaded 30-round
magazines of 760s.

which is used for an AK-47.

760 by 30 now.

In progresso, officers have detained a
man.

who was wanted in Texas for stalking and
harassment.

But do you have a warrant?

That's what I'm looking for.

Over 13 million people are stalked in
the U.S. every year, most of them women.

The man claims he knows nothing about
his warrant.

But Officer Pena isn't convinced.

You don't remember anything? No. You
didn't get into an argument with

somebody? Yeah, my wife just separated
from me. I caught my wife cheating.

Okay. And, like, she moved out, and I
kicked her out.

You never, like, hit her? No.

Have you been calling her nonstop or
anything like that?

Mm-hmm.

The man admits calling his ex-wife, but
claims he's the victim, not her.

He's stating that it could be a
retaliation from his wife since she does

have a new boyfriend and everything.

But I think it could be a little bit
more than that, that he's not telling

us.

Officer Pena calls state police to get
more details about the warrant.

Thank you. Okay, perfect. Thank you.
Have a good day.

They confirm that the man's wife has
filed a complaint that he's been

aggressively stalking her for the past
six weeks.

Mercedes police arrive to take the man
into custody.

Stalking is classified as a pattern of
repeated and unwanted harassment.

Stalking, how, where?

That's crazy.

After what I told you. Just go through
the motion, sir. You just have to do it

and see what happens, okay? Try to calm
down. Try to relax.

There's no point in getting upset, okay?

Okay.

The man is taken to county jail and will
appear before a state judge in the

morning. If the stalking and harassment
offenses are proven, he could be

returning to prison for up to five
years.

In Eagle Pack, a rifle and ammunition
have been found hidden in speaker

boxes driven by a pocket arrow.

This is two fully loaded 30-round
magazines, a 760, which is used for an

AK-47.

760 by 39.

The smugglers have made an extra effort
to conceal the assault weapon itself.

So as I'm opening this duct tape,
there's a slimy texture.

I'm not quite sure yet what it is, but
it's going to be something that's used

to conceal the odor to the canine.

It didn't work.

As suspected, the gun is an AK-47
assault rifle.

In the wrong hand, this is a bad tool.

Let's make sure that it's not loaded.

AK-47s are the weapon of choice for
Mexican drug cartels, who use them to

facilitate their deadly trade, resulting
in hundreds of murders every year.

It's a 16-inch barrel with a buttstock,
which is considered to be a short

-barreled rifle, a high-power rifle
that's confusable.

With the firearm and ammo seized, The
rest of the driver's family is allowed

to continue their journey.

Meanwhile, the driver will be handed
over to a Homeland Security

investigations agent for further
questioning.

He will be the one who decides if the
subject is released or going to be

prosecuted for the weapon smuggling.

If it's determined the driver knew more
about his cargo than he's letting on, he

could be looking at 20 years in jail.

Any weapon that we take up the streets
is a good weapon. The weapon that we

found today is an extremely dangerous
weapon.

50,000 vehicles a day cross the Detroit
River, which separates the United States

and Canada.

Officers must check each one.

Good afternoon, citizenship?

All right, why were you in Canada, sir?
You didn't try to talk him out of it?

Part of this job is just being able to
think on the fly and being able to

adapt.

Everything is always changing. You never
know what you're going to get. Every

person that comes to this port, it's a
mystery until you can kind of figure it

out, you know. So you kind of just got
to prep yourself. I mean, I think every

officer here knows what they signed up
for, and you just got to be able to

adjust and apply like that when you need
to.

This morning, officers have detained a
van at secondary inspection.

The driver claims he took a wrong turn
after picking up his ex-wife at a

Detroit bus station.

and accidentally ended up at the border.

I've come to pick her up in the bus
station.

That's my ex-wife.

She's coming up here to see her
grandchildren.

They didn't intend to come here, but
once they enter onto our property, they

are now on federal property and all
federal rules apply to them.

Put your hands on the wall over here.

A search has revealed the man is
carrying a handgun and ammunition.

which is illegal to transport over the
border without the correct paperwork.

It could be punishable by a five-year
prison sentence.

That's one of my good shoes. Yeah, see
these.

Concerned there may be other prohibited
items, officers begin a check of his

vehicle.

Sometimes you see vents that are
partially pried.

This one's been either pried open
previously.

But the rivets, you can tell, have been
definitely broken. So we're going to

take a look and make sure there's
nothing else in there.

The vents are empty.

But the search is far from over.

People try to disguise things they know
they're not supposed to have or they

think they're not supposed to have.

It's just a standard part of human
nature.

We'll take a quick look, make sure the
stitching looks good.

Center console.

Marijuana rolling papers.

Well, that's a pistol magazine.

Think sour.

And marijuana.

Tubes that say that it is infused with
THC or marijuana.

And then marijuana labeled little
packages.

Although legal in both Michigan and
Canada, possessing any type of cannabis

product at a federal border could mean a
fine of up to $25,000.

Marijuana still is considered a Schedule
I narcotic federally, which means it

cannot be on this property. It is a zero
tolerance policy.

The gun, ammo, and marijuana.

are a trifecta of trouble for the
driver.

In San Diego.

Any fruits, plants, seeds, vegetables?

No, that's fine.

It's the job of Customs and Border
Protection to stop endangered wildlife

or products from being smuggled into the
U.S.

Today, agriculture specialist Ortega
Fuentes is checking a driver who is

returning from a fishing trip.

They said they're coming from Mexico,
and they're heading to California.

They declare me a yellowtail.

and some fish that they fish on the
shore of the beach.

How much fish are you bringing, sir?

20 or 30 fish.

How many kilos or pounds?

A lot?

I didn't weigh that.

Okay, no worries. Can we place it on the
floor?

Are you using me as the goal here?

No, sir.

I'm doing my inspection.

Okay.

Can you step over the table, please?

The man doesn't seem happy about his
fish being inspected.

My time is very important. I didn't
break the law.

I have crossed this border over a
thousand times since 1965.

But, you know, as a U.S. citizen, I feel
like a criminal coming back into my own

country.

But there's good reason for officers to
take an interest in the containers.

We're going to see what they have here.

There's more than 25 kilos.

Then they assume it's a commercial
quantity, and they can return them for

that.

An estimated $2.4 billion worth of
illegal seafood is smuggled into the U

.S. every year.

Agriculture specialist Ortega Fuentes
wants to confirm the man isn't smuggling

any protected or endangered species.

So they have the Dewey dogs.

They are allowed to bring at least, I
believe, eight pieces per passenger.

I don't know if these are still alive or
not.

Large saltwater clans called Dewey dogs.

are found in the waters off Baja,
California, and are a valuable delicacy.

Although undeclared, the

clams aren't a protected species.

But another discovery is a major red
flag.

Is this fish bladder?

Came from the yellow tail.

There's nothing illegal about it. Okay.

The team must check the bladder isn't
from a protected species, such as the

totoaba fish.

These are highly prized in Eastern
medicine and bring in thousands of

dollars on the black market.

I'm going to contact NOAA and let them
see this. Maybe I can take some pictures

for them.

If the find is confirmed a protected
species by the National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Agency, the fishermen could
face up to 20 years in prison and a $250

,000 fine.

Every weekend.

20,000 U.S. citizens crossed the border
from Progreso, Texas, into Mexico.

Many head there to party, meaning
officers frequently have to deal with

travelers who are excessively
intoxicated.

For the most part, I would say 80% of
the time, we get great people. We get

great travelers. They're usually pretty
nice. They're pretty compliant. And, you

know, it's just another day for us,
obviously.

That's not always going to be, you know,
the happy story every single day. Every

once in a while we do get our situations
here and there, and we have to treat it

accordingly.

The bone's sticking out.

This evening, an American who spent the
day drinking across the border has

arrived in a Mexican ambulance.

He was fighting in Mexico apparently and
he fell and he landed really bad.

So he's trying to go home and our EMT is
telling him that he needs to go

to a hospital.

We contact the U.S. ambulance to come
over here, pick up the subject, and then

this ambulance would just return to
Mexico.

The emergency medical technicians have
determined the man has broken his leg.

and are taking him for further
evaluation.

That's very common. We get people with
blood on their head, puncture wounds,

a little bit of everything.

Or people who just, they're too drunk to
walk. We get that a lot too.

He seems to not be in pain. I think the
pain will hit once the alcohol wears

off.

Meanwhile, over at Pedestrian
Inspections, another man heading home

after an afternoon of partying has
arrived with a friend.

Hello.

By law.

It's the traveler's responsibility to
declare any baggage they are personally

carrying. What's in the bag?

Well,

you brought it, so you got to... Okay,

you had it.

You had it, so what's in the bags?

All right,

just put them here.

You put it there, so you're responsible
for it.

I'm not too responsible for it.

Go ahead and put the bags here. If
there's anything in that bag that's not

supposed to be there, you're the one
that brought him here, so you're

responsible. I'm not putting it there.

The man's refusal to comply with Officer
Rodriguez is a red flag and

begs the question of what's in the bag.

The man is detained for a secondary
inspection.

Put the bag there.

Do you have any weapons on you? No, sir.
All right.

Well,

right now I'm going to go search through
the bags, see if there's anything that

maybe he didn't want to show me, and
that's why he left them on the floor.

The bags reveal a variety of household
cleaning and beauty products.

Since drugs like methamphetamine can be
smuggled in liquid form, Officer

Gonzalez must check each container.

This looks like it's some sort of hair
gel or skin gel.

I'm just opening the stuff and leaving
them open to see if there's any

crystallization.

If it's anything that's not supposed to
be in there, it should crystallize if

it's bad. If it's not bad, it will stay,
retain its normal form.

If officers find that the bags contain
narcotics, this traveler could be facing

decades in prison.

In Detroit.

You guys are all set? You have a good
day? A driver giving his ex-wife a ride

to visit her grandkid.

They've stopped after taking a wrong
turn towards the Canadian border.

Put your hands on the wall again.

Officers have uncovered a handgun with
ammo.

That's one of my good shoes. Yeah, see
these.

And suspected cannabis products illegal
at the international border.

A chemical test will confirm if the
recovered products contain THC, the

psychoactive ingredient of cannabis.

Possession of THC products is federally
illegal.

It could result in a fine or even jail
time.

So we're making sure all the substrate
is at the bottom so it's easy. We're

going to break these glass capsules
inside.

It is either purple or purple and white.
It is an alert for a positive reaction

for the narcotic spread.

You can see it definitely is a positive
alert.

The man doesn't deny being a regular
cannabis user.

I'm a dialysis patient.

Okay. And I got to sit in a chair for
four hours.

Yeah. And you can't get up. It's a long
time. You can't roll over on your side.

Those things that you got there that I
forgot that were in there, that's the

only thing that helps the pain.

It helps me in order I can do the four
hours sitting in that chair.

So you use THC to, well, you prescribe
it or is it just?

It helps.

You just kind of buy it and use it?

I go to the dispensary, go in and buy
the dispensary, and that's it.

Although the man has a legitimate
medical reason for having marijuana

products, It has no bearing at the
border.

So do you kind of understand what's
going on, though?

Yeah. That federal property, it's still
a Schedule I narcotic, so no medical.

Right. So we are seizing it today.

Since they're prohibited on federal
property, all the man's cannabis

products are seized, along with his gun.

You're going to have to petition for it.
You may or may not get that. Yeah, well,

that's all right. If I get it back, I
hope so.

It seems the driver made an honest
mistake, so has spared any further

penalty.

And he and his passenger are free to go.

Having a hell of a day time.

I'm having fun.

Believe me, it's probably not the worst
way it could have ended up.

All right, you're good. I'll walk you
out.

Well, it's been real, folks.

Yeah. Yeah,

I'll be safe.

Maybe I can start my vacation now.

Remember, see how this is? This is how
come my door won't open.

Hopefully they have a good time with
their kid and have a good rest of their

education and are a little bit smarter
about where they're turning here in

Detroit.

In San Diego... It came from the yellow
tail.

There's nothing illegal about it. Okay.

Agriculture specialist Ortega Fuentes is
concerned a man may be smuggling rare

fish bladders worth up to $80,000 apiece
on the black market.

As a U.S. citizen, I feel like a
criminal coming back into my own

country. My only concern is with
something that I found that we suspect

is a fish bladder.

The illegal trade of endangered species
is estimated to be worth up to $10

billion a year.

A call to the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration should

confirm if these bladders are from the
protected toduaba fish.

I don't know. I'm not sure.

That's why I'm calling you.

If confirmed positive, the man could
face a $25,000 fine and up to two

decades in prison.

I didn't break the law.

This is the first time I've been put
through this.

I have a house in Baja. I come twice a
month.

Okay. Okay. Thank you so much.

Thank you. Bye.

She's good with it.

They can keep it.

It's good news for the man.

His claim that the bladders come from
the yellowtail fish checks out, and

there will be no action taken for the
undeclared clan.

Okay. Thank you. Okay. She took it out
of here. No, that's all.

Be careful with it, okay?

I'm very happy. That's all I can say.
Okay. Can you help me put everything

back in the trunk?

Your name is Ortega Fuentes?

Yes, sir. Thank you.

The man may be upset, but these types of
inspections are crucial to protecting

endangered species and stopping the
black market trade.

What an experience.

Yes, sir. Thank you so much.

I think it was a good inspection.

Yeah, I'm looking out for my country,
for the agriculture, for all the

vegetation, the animals, everything.

We're doing our part.

At the Juarez Lincoln Bridge in Laredo.

How many people today?

Three. Three people. Does the window go
down in the back? Right.

Following a recent smuggling trend,
officers are carrying out a special

operation.

targeting lone travelers.

Follow this officer right here.

One vehicle has been sent to secondary
inspection after the driver appeared

nervous.

He was too talkative.

He started shaking and moving around a
lot.

It just didn't fit. It didn't seem
right.

Officers carry out a thorough search of
the vehicle.

Hey, what's up? Seven or what? Yeah, I'm
just going to need the...

Everything's... I just need the hood. If
you can help me with that. Okay.

So all this... See, so all this is
dirty. I mean, nothing

here has been touched.

Let me get it.

649 Delta.

This right here.

This is way more cleaner than the rest.

Clean areas can suggest the vehicle has
been recently altered to hide something.

You see that area over there?

It's dirty.

The whole truck is full of dirt.

Except that area right there. 093 Delta.

Suspecting there could be a secret
compartment behind the dashboard.

The team wants to take a closer look.

It's been taped shut before.

Oh, look at that.

There it is.

In progresso.

All right, just put him here.

It's on my end.

You put it there, so you're responsible
for it.

I'm not too rich, so I'll lose for it.

A man has been detained after refusing
to declare the bags he was carrying,

claiming they belonged to his friend.

But he was trying to say she was the one
responsible for the bags. But to me,

he's the one carrying the bags, so he
was the one responsible for them.

The man seems to be drunk.

And although the bags appear to contain
just cleaning products, officers want to

be sure the couple isn't trying to
distract them.

We have a lot of people who do come in,
they do come in inebriated and do come

in, you know, in not their full senses.

And we've seen where people take
advantage of that to hinder the

inspection or to try to get the officer
to not pay attention to exactly what

he's doing.

Smugglers commonly hide methamphetamine
inside everyday cleaning products.

So Officer Gonzalez checks the
containers.

He still insists the bags aren't his.

The officer asked me to put them on the
counter. I said, I'm not cleaning that.

I'm not cleaning it.

Anything in the bags good?

It was negative. I opened the
containers. There was nothing

crystallized, nothing turned bad.

It was nonsense.

He's cleaning up.

Yeah.

With nothing suspicious found in the
bags,

This time, the man will face no further
action.

Still

defiant,

the man is free to head home, leaving
his friend to carry the bag.

I don't know anyone who travels with
bags that are not theirs.

And even if you're helping them out, at
this point, when you come in, you're

supposed to declare everything you have
with you.

In Laredo. Look at that. It's been taped
shut before.

Oh, look at that.

Officers have found a secret compartment
behind the dashboard of an SUV.

There it is.

It looks like steroids.

Yeah.

Steroids. That's how strong.

It's a control stop there.

An estimated 3 to 4 million U.S.
citizens use steroids.

But since they are a controlled
substance, they must be purchased with a

prescription.

While the driver is detained for
questioning, officers begin the

extraction.

It looks like steroids. This one has
been a lot.

These steroids are artificial
testosterone.

used to boost muscle mass.

Since their misuse can cause heart
attacks or strokes, they're heavily

regulated, meaning a black market has
emerged.

Other prohibited meds are also found.

These are diet pills that are not
allowed to come in. They're not FDA

approved.

That's why it's...

It's so important to get it stopped here
because we don't know what they're

mixing or what they're saying it is.

If convicted, the man could be facing up
to five years in jail.

Some of these things are dangerous.

There are some of these things that can
cause permanent liver damage, kidney

damage, kidney failure.

Today's haul of over 1,500 illegal
steroids and diet pills has a street

value of at least $50,000.

Somebody might actually get hurt or
even, like, die from this.

So, I mean, I feel pretty good taking
that off the street.

It's a good day.

The steroid industry is worth billions
of dollars, but their misuse is rising

among young men and women.

These drugs will be tested, and the
driver handed over to Homeland Security

Investigations.