Federal commission speaks out after armed robbery attempt along Colorado river
Commission says this is the first time employees have been targeted - News 11's Cody Lee reports
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - We're learning more about an attempted robbery that took place along the Colorado River Monday morning, close to the Morelos Dam, where tens of thousands of migrants have crossed this year, some of them even targeted by robbers as well.
RELATED: YCSO: Attempted armed robbery demonstrates need for awareness
Two federal employees, with the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC), were conducting daily work out on the river. According to the commission, these workers are in charge of accounting and sampling the water.
They told us one employee was inside a boat when three masked men flagged him down from the Mexican side of the river. The masked men then demanded the employee to give them all that he had, including the boat, which is federal property.
Lori Kuczmanski, public affairs officer for the IBWC, told News 11 this has never happened in the past. The agency covers over 2,000 miles of international boundaries.
"We are just so blessed nothing happened to them. He didn't even have a cell phone on him or anything in his pockets. They were probably after money, stuff like that," Kuczmanski said.
The two employees, based out of the Yuma field office, are a little shaken up but were not injured.
The IBWC says it's working on enhancing safety protocols and admits the employees did exactly what they should have in this situation.
In light of the incident, the Yuma County Sheriff's Office is warning the public to be aware of their surroundings. We reached out to YCSO but they were not available for an interview at this time.
[RELATED: Armed robberies targeting migrants on the rise]
Meanwhile the city of Yuma issued an emergency declaration last week after Mayor Doug Nicholls said he was concerned some migrants crossing into the U.S. from the Morelos Dam were not being processed by Border Patrol agents. At the time of the interview he said locals should not be concerned about the emergency declaration but that they should be cautious.
