Sheriff’s Office and Mexican police work together to catch suspect
Imperial County Sheriff’s Office Sergeant Jorge Cabanillas said the long arm of U.S. law may not be able to cross south of the border, but it joins hands with Mexican agencies to make sure there’s no place to run and hide for those wanted by the law.
“Due to our geographic location, we have to maintain close relationships with our partners south of the border,” Cabanillas said.
Such is the case with 31-year-old, Jose Roberto Rodriguez, who allegedly skipped bail and fled to Mexico because of an arrest warrant.
“Rodriguez has a number of cases both with the El Centro police and the Imperial County Sheriff’s Office involving identity theft, fraud,” Cabanillas said.
The sheriff’s office alerted Mexican authorities about Rodriguez.
“He’s manufacturing fraudulent I.D. cards, fraudulent debit and credit cards,” Cabanillas said.
And the collaboration worked.
“He was located in Mexico by the authorities down there. And through the liaison unit he was turned over to the sheriff’s office and he was placed into custody here at Imperial County jail for the warrant that was out for him,” Cabanillas said.
The collaboration works both ways.
“We’re able to assist them not only in locating suspects but also victims of crimes,” Cabanillas said.
Cabanillas said the exchange of information between both agencies has brought about good results and is expected to continue.
“Every week we deal with a number of cases involving this type of situation, and it’s an ongoing collaboration which has been extremely beneficial to both sides,” Cabanillas said.
