MOVING ON AFTER ALDS LOSSES
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ZAPATA COUNTY
LAREDO
Foiled at Falcon Man claims he was coerced into smuggling By CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ THE ZAPATA TIMES
A man claimed he was threatened into guiding a group of illegal immigrants through the Falcon Lake area in Zapata County, according to court documents. Homeland Security Investigations special agents identified the suspect as Jesus Francisco
Villanueva-Saldaña, of Mina, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. He remains in federal custody. On Oct. 11, U.S. Border Patrol agents responded to reports of illegal activity at about 1:15 a.m. near the shores of Falcon Lake. Reports state several people were seen walking toward the Siesta Shores neighborhood in
Zapata. “In the (agents’) experience, smuggling organizations often make landfall on the uninhabited shores of Falcon Lake, then walk their (human) and, or narcotics loads to the Siesta Shores neighborhood or U.S. 83 for transportation further into the United States,” states the criminal complaint filed Tuesday.
Agents who responded to the area detained 15 people in the brush area. Records allege all were in the country illegally. Agents transported the group to the Zapata station, where HSI special agents responded to investigate. Villanueva-Saldaña allegedly waived his rights and chose to speak
See FALCON PAGE 10A
EL PASO
335TH ANNIVERSARY
MARTINEZ
MONCIVAIS
Couple arrested for lewd act Officers found them in the bed of a truck with the tailgate open By CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ THE ZAPATA TIMES
A man from Zapata was recently arrested in Laredo for performing a lewd act in public, according to authorities. Gerardo Martinez, 29, and a woman identified as Elisa Moncivais, 41, of Laredo, were arrested and charged with public lewdness, a Class A misdemeanor punishable with up to one year in jail or a $4,000 fine or both. LPD responded to a pub-
lic lewdness call at 1:26 a.m. Oct. 10. Officers were dispatched to reports of a man and a woman in the middle of lewd act in the area of Crescent Loop and Lancer Road. Officers arrived and found couple in the bed of the truck with the tailgate open, according to police. Both were taken to the Webb County Jail. Martinez and Moncivais are out on bond. (César G. Rodriguez may be reached at 728-2568 or cesar@lmtonline.com)
BORDER PATROL
Photo by Mark Lambie/The El Paso Times | AP
This photo taken Oct. 7 shows Father Miguel Briseno, who will celebrate the Ysleta Mission’s 335th anniversary of the first Mass, in El Paso, Texas. The celebration culminates Sunday with a procession and service led by Bishop Mark Seitz.
Mission is oldest continually used church in US By LUIS CARLOS LOPEZ EL PASO TIMES
EL PASO — Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, which was founded in 1680, has survived the Pueblo Revolt, fire, Texas independence and even boundary lines switching it from Mexico into Texas. It remains in use to this day as churchgoers every Sunday celebrate Mass at the oldest church in the United States. For anyone who doubts the church’s antiquity, the Rev. Miguel Briseno and church volunteer Alfonso Baeza have the proof. Tucked inside church cabinets are old birth and death certificates. As Briseno browsed the books, he said, “Let’s see how far back we go.” The parish office has handwritten ledgers of birth and
Tucked inside church cabinets are old birth and death certificates. As Briseno browsed the books, he said, “Let’s see how far back we go.” death certificates going back to the 1800s. The names and dates printed on the books are moments frozen in time. The smell of the old ledgers are a history refresher, of people who lived and died during a time when the mission was already long established in the El Paso region. The ledgers, the original church walls and a relic of a life-size Jesus that might be as old as the mission itself remind parishioners of the mission’s importance. “I think it’s important to celebrate
and remember those important moments in our history,” Briseno told the El Paso Times. “Especially when a small group of people have come to celebrate Mass. The first Mass was celebrated here in Ysleta on Oct. 12, 1680.” The Ysleta Mission is the oldest continuously used church in the United States. The Ysleta and Socorro mis-
sions are historic sites included in the National Register of Historic Places and certified by the National Parks Service as part of El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro. Although the mission was established in 1682, church officials commemorate Oct. 12, 1680, as the date when Spanish and Tigua Indian families gathered in thanksgiving. Last Sunday, before Mass, a procession started at the Thula, a place
See CHURCH PAGE 10A
Man arrested for allegedly transporting immigrants By CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ THE ZAPATA TIMES
A man was arrested in Zapata County for transporting nine people who had entered the country illegally, according to court documents released this week. Identified as the suspect, Alejandro Leal-Hernandez was charged with transporting illegal immigrants. He is in federal custody. A U.S. Border Patrol agent assigned to an area along Texas 16 near Zapata observed a black Dodge Ram at about 5:15 a.m. Oct. 10. Reports state the agent observed what appeared to be a sleeve of a jacket or some other garment flapping in the bed of the Dodge, states the criminal complaint filed Tuesday. Records add the agent noticed some inconsistencies with the oilfield pickup, such as an aftermarket lift kit, lack of company logos, among other factors. The agent activated the unit’s emergency lights to conduct an immigration inspection on the occupants of
Records add the agent noticed some inconsistencies with the oilfield pickup, such as an aftermarket lift kit, lack of company logos, among other factors. the Dodge. Reports state the Dodge swerved in and out of the road. Then, several people exited the Dodge and ran toward the brush, records state. Authorities caught up to the group, a total of 10 immigrants. Authorities identified one as the driver, Leal-Hernandez.
See ARRESTED PAGE 10A