AZLance

they actually have several tags, so I might auction the others off, JK....

Mexico is out of control!!!!!!! Nov. 29, 2006, 2:58PM 3 Americans abducted on hunting trip in Mexico By JAMES PINKERTON Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle TOOLS Email Get section feed Print Subscribe NOW RESOURCES Hunting trip kidnapping Site of kidnapping HARLINGEN — Three U.S. citizens — including a prominent Laredo customs broker and a Sweetwater businessman — were kidnapped Sunday along with two others after going deer hunting in northern Mexico, U.S. authorities said Tuesday. A gang of armed men swept into the 6,500-acre Rancho La Barranca in the northern state of Coahuila Sunday evening and abducted the five, including customs broker Librado Piña Jr., 49; his son, Librado Piña III, 25; Sweetwater businessman David Mueller, 45; and two Mexicans — ranch cook Marco Ortiz and Monterrey resident Fidel Rodriguez Cerdan. Though details were sketchy Tuesday night, U.S. officials and relatives of the kidnapped men were stunned by the attack. ''We're pulling out all the stops," said one U.S. law enforcement agent, who asked not to be identified. ''We're going to go through the proper channels, but obviously we have back channels ... from years of experience trying to resolve these things." A Mexican investigator who spoke on condition of anonymity said the ranch was ransacked and such items as washing machines and beds were stolen, giving the case an unusual twist. "In a kidnapping, they aren't going to go about stealing objects," said the official. "It's an unusual situation." The abductions of Piña Jr., his son and Mueller bring this year's tally of Americans kidnapped in Mexico to 33. Of those, 14 Americans were kidnapped in the Nuevo Laredo area. No previous threats Piña family members said they suspected the kidnapping was financially motivated. "We absolutely cannot pinpoint the reason for this," a family member said. "We believe they saw a wealthy person with a big ranch house in Mexico and they went to see what they could steal." Family members said Piña Jr. had not been threatened. "If he had, he would have never gone to the ranch and put his life or the life of other people in danger," said another family member. Family members said they learned about the crime after two Mexican clients traveled to the ranch for a hunt, but found the house in shambles. The Piñas say they immediately contacted Mexican officials in Nuevo Laredo and Coahuila and met with the FBI that afternoon. Piña Jr. owns the ranch, which offers trophy whitetail-deer hunts and is located about a 30-minute drive northwest of the Colombia Bridge in Laredo. Santos Vasquez Estrada, the local head of the Coahuila state attorney general's office, said Piña Jr. may have been the main target of the attack. The U.S. law enforcement source who spoke on condition of anonymity said it does not appear that the abducted men had any connection to ongoing turf wars that have killed hundreds of people in Mexico this year. ''We don't, at this time, have any hard evidence that any of these people were involved in any illicit activity," the source said. Group was well-armed The five men were hunting at the ranch about 8 p.m. Sunday when the assailants arrived. ''A large group did take over the ranch, and they were well-armed," the source said. U.S. officials said Tuesday that no ransom requests had been made so far. ''Since the kidnapping occurred within the sovereign nation of Mexico, the FBI has initiated a Foreign Police Cooperation investigation," said a statement from D. True Brown, acting special agent in charge of the FBI's San Antonio division. La Barranca ranch is one of two owned by Piña Jr., a second-generation Laredo customs broker, industrialist and owner of the Corona beer distributorship. His abduction shocked members of the close-knit Texas Deer Association. ''Librado has been a director on our board for several years, and is a good active member," said president Scott W. Bugai, a veterinarian from Seguin. ''I've been down to his ranch in Laredo, and he's a super-nice guy," Bugai said. ''This is a shock. What's the world coming to?" Lane Laning, the deer association's treasurer, said Piña Jr. has worked hard to introduce game management to ranches in northern Mexico. ''Boy, I'm praying for him ... and for Mr. Mueller, too," said Laning, who manages the 5F Game Ranch outside of Sweetwater. ''It's sad Mexico is turning out like this." Employees of Mueller's company, Sweetwater Steel, were distraught. ''It's been a long day, a pretty rough day," said J.L. Goldsmith, a salesman at the company that sells steel for construction. San Antonio Express-News correspondent Sean Mattson and the Associated Press contributed to this report. james.pinkerton@chron.com http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4366020.html

Read the article below and look at the highlighted portion in red... Come on guys pull your head out of the sand! The Mexican Government and Police are responsible for a good portion of the crime that goes on down there!!! I go down to Mexico at least 6 times a year, but I always keep one eye open! State Department warns of travel to Mexico border At least 27 Americans have been kidnapped in past 6 months Posted: 2:06 AM EST (0706 GMT) People cross from the U.S. into Mexico at the Paso del Norte border crossing in Juarez, Mexico. WASHINGTON (CNN) -- At least 27 Americans have been abducted along the border with Mexico in the past six months because of increased violence among drug traffickers, prompting the U.S. State Department to issue a warning to travelers. Of the 27, two were killed, 14 were released and 11 remain missing, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said Thursday. The abductions do not include "express" kidnappings in which Americans are forced to withdraw large sums of money from ATMs before they are released, Boucher said. Boucher said he understood the Mexican government may not be happy with the travel warning, but "we do feel that it's important to tell Americans about the security situation near the border." "We have worked closely with Mexican authorities to take the appropriate steps to ensure the safety and the security of U.S. citizens in Mexico," Boucher said. "And in situations where Americans are victims of crime, we do follow those cases very closely as the Mexican authorities try to arrest and prosecute those who are responsible." Boucher emphasized that "a vast majority" of Mexicans and Americans crossing the border do so "without any mishaps or difficulties." In its public announcement released Wednesday, the State Department said "violent criminal activity along the U.S.-Mexico border has increased as a product of a war between criminal organizations struggling for control of the lucrative narcotics trade along the border." An underpaid and under-trained police force in Mexico and a weak judicial system add to the problems, according to the warning. "Criminals, armed with an impressive array of weapons, know there is little chance they will be caught and punished," according to the statement. "In some cases, assailants have been wearing full or partial police uniforms and have used vehicles that resemble police vehicles, indicating some elements of the police might be involved." The travel warning, which expires April 25, calls on Americans to avoid areas where illicit activity occurs, "visiting only legitimate business and tourism areas of border towns during daylight hours."

Yes, but in WI, the culprits were arrested! In Mexico the Government and Police are in on the kidnapping!

Dave, I have plenty of Americans that can landscape your yard. I refuse to hire anyone who is illegal. Sure sometimes it is tough to find good workers, by I follow the law, and soooner or later a American citizen fills the job.

Dave, I threw that F*@#ing thing in the trash! They called me about a few months later asking why I din't send it in. I told them to go to heck and hung up! That was almost a year ago. They haven't arrested me yet!

I have AZG&F stickers on all my trail cams! No one has stolen one since I put the stickers on...

I'm reading the book as I type. Excellent so far!

You think the picture above is bad? Look at the one below? Both of these spots are in unit 36A, 30+ miles from the border and 1/2 mile from the nearest road. This is MY PUBILC LAND that my tax dollars pay for. They are destroying it! My kids may never know what a wash without water jugs in it looks like! The illegals are destroying our hunting habitat! What will you tell your kids? "Sorry son, we cant go hunting anymore because it is too dangerous to hunt in our own country". I dont want to tell my kids that!

You are correct! Illegal alliens in America wire transfer over 10 BILLION dollars a year back to mexico. Banks like Wells Fargo and Bank of America are the biggest culprets, aiding and abedding these illegals. This accounts for Mexicos second largest source of money behind oil exports. And so much for the argument that these illegals are working here and spending money here helping our economy! How can they be helping our economy by sending 10 BILLION dollars back to mexico? And the biggest thing to think about here on a hunting forum, is what are the illegal aliens doing to our hunting habitat? Anyone seen the trash in the southern units latley? They are destroying our public land before our eyes!!!

Unfortunatley, the bags of money found in the plane in the Rincons was rotted and no good. The guy who found it was pissed, because he had seen the glare up there on the mountain for a couple of years before he decided to hike to it. If I remember it was like $80,000 worth of rotted bills..... Lance

30 carbine.........

I changed a picture to exclude the license plate to protect the undercover customs agents...

Not my truck guys!!! Agents from customs and BP came in and loaded up the dope... I wasn't born in the dark...

Here is what I found in 36A last time I was down there. 5 guys came walking up to where we were parked just after dark, carrying 5 large bundles on their backs. We shone our flashlight on them and they dropped the bundles and ran. Border Patrol came in and picked up the 300+ pounds of pot and thanked us! So when President Bush says. "these are just good people who want to come here and work", Dont believe it!!!

I have had lions as close as 6 feet when calling, but these lions never chased me or shot at me, like the illegals. I have been chased by drug runners and shot at by drug runners while hunting down south. My brother also had all of his food stolen in his camp. What has this country come to when you have to be scared to hunt in your own country??? We can thank "El Presidente Bush" for this!!!!!!!!!

classic "Columbian Neck Tie" shot. Kills them every time!

Guys, this is not good! Hunting season right around the corner, and half of 36 a,b,&c is closed. I was down there yesterday and it looked like a war zone. The national gaurd is everywhere, BP helicopters buzing everywhere, BP agents everywhere, and big charter buses full of illegals heading north to the detention center all day long. I talked to an agent, who said the "flood gates have opened, like they have never seen before". Read the press release below.... Bird Watchers Will Have To Find Another Refuge 10-13-2006 1:25 AM (Tucson, AZ) -- A large portion of a popular bird watching area is off limits today. Part of the Buenos Aires Wildlife Refuge south of Tucson is closed due to security concerns surrounding illegal immigration. Officials say that over the past two years, over 250-thousand illegal immigrants have entered the refuge. Officials add that immigrants and officers alike have experienced increased levels of violence. The popular area shares a five-mile section of border with Mexico. Copyright 2006 Metro Networks Communications Inc., A Westwood One Company

Guys, if your not busy this Saturday, come down and help out. Our wildlife needs all the help we can get...

Its right around the corner! The 10th bi-annual Arizona Hunters Who Care Trash Cleanup. The Cleanup is Saturday October 21st, in Three Points, AZ. The cleanup will begin at 7:00am at the Veterans Memorial Park in Three Points. To get there go west on Ajo Way from I-19 approx 20 miles, then turn south on Hwy 286, proceed south aprox. 2 miles to Three Points Memorial Park. Like every year, we will have tons of prizes to give away, and a archery shoot for the kids. Plus this is your chance to get out and help out the wildlife that has given so much to you. This years event is sponsored by the Safari Club, Arizona Chapter, AZ Game & Fish Dept., AZ Deer Association, and others. If you can help out by donating prizes, 3D targets for the kids shoot, or just your time, please send me an e-mail. We have picked up over 180,000 tons of trash since we started this event, and this year I have found more trash than ever. Hope to see you there, Lance Altherr azhunterswhocare@hotmail.com

That 300 got thru our National Gaurd and Border Patrol... Just shows how many they are catching. I saw the buses rolling north again today, full of El Presidente Bush's amigos...

Watch where you point that gun in the first photo....

On the Kings Anvil ranch which is 38 miles from the border, the Minutemen have had over 300 illegals come into sight in just over a week. BP has only apprehended about 1/3 of them. All of these illegals came thru the refuge to get there.

anyone coming??

I spent the weekend down there scouting, and saw the following: 2 coues bucks 39 coues does 9 mule deer does 67 illegals 2940 empty water jugs