Guardian Angel Freed From Jail After Arrest During Tijuana Patrol

A member of the Guardian Angels was released from a Tijuana jail Tuesday, one day after Mexican officials arrested him while he was patrolling a border barrio with other members of the self-styled crime prevention group.

But the national leader of the U.S.-based group, who was with Rick Brooks just before Brooks was arrested, said that his release proved Mexico had no grounds to stop the patrols, and he vowed not to stop them.

“They couldn’t come up with a law that would prohibit a citizen from patrolling in Mexico. Rick’s speedy release proves that the patrols are legal. If there was anything illegal, they should’ve thrown the book at him,” said Curtis Sliwa.

Brooks, 24, said in a telephone interview that he was “treated fair” during his jail stay. “It was a pretty rough arrest, and when they put me in the cell, someone hit me in the ribs. They don’t mess around down there. But all in all, I was treated fair,” said Brooks, a Los Angeles security guard.

Earlier in the day, U.S. Consulate officials in Tijuana said that Brooks would probably be charged with violating Mexican immigration laws and could be detained for up to 72 hours before a decision on charging him would be announced. U.S. and Mexican officials gave no reason for Brooks’ speedy release.

Brooks was arrested by Tijuana police Monday evening in Colonia Libertad, a tough ghetto on the border east of the San Ysidro port of entry. Brooks was with four other bereted members of the group when they were confronted by about 10 policemen armed with rifles and pistols.

Sliwa said that he and three followers, who had been patrolling the area for several days, escaped across the border to the U.S. side. But Brooks, who apparently was closest to the police, “froze” and put his hands in the air. Sliwa said that his group was patrolling in the canyons that straddle the international border and in Colonia Libertad to protect illegal aliens from Mexican bandits.

Sharon Wilkinson, a spokeswoman at the U.S. Consulate in Tijuana, said that she met with Brooks Tuesday morning and described him in “good shape.” Tijuana Police Chief Gerardo Olachea Sosa had warned Sliwa that the Angels would be arrested if they were found patrolling in Tijuana, and Wilkinson said that police were treating the incident “as a normal arrest.”

Earlier this month, Mexican customs officials refused to allow Sliwa and his group to cross the border at San Ysidro unless they removed their trademark red berets and shirts with the Angels’ logo. Sliwa said that he wants to organize a chapter of Tijuana Guardian Angels to patrol in Colonia Libertad, a crime-ridden neighborhood.

The flamboyant Sliwa said that the Tijuana chapter would patrol Colonia Libertad and San Diego chapters would patrol the canyons on the U.S. side. Law enforcement officials in both countries have expressed opposition to Sliwa’s plans.

Sliwa said that Brooks’ arrest would not stop his group from continuing to patrol along the border or in Colonia Libertad. Mexican officials have called the patrols, even by Mexican citizens, illegal, but Sliwa said that Brooks’ release and Mexico’s failure to file charges against him prove that the patrols are legal.

However, Sliwa admitted that the Angels do break Mexican immigration laws by entering the country illegally. He said the patrols begin on the U.S. side in the canyons before members cross the international border to walk the streets and alleyways of the Colonia Libertad.

According to Sliwa, Angels are forced to enter illegally because Mexican Customs officials do not allow them to wear their “uniforms” when they cross legally at San Ysidro.

“We aren’t going to let the border stop us from doing what has to be done to stop the bandits. We see the problem of banditry affecting both countries, and it’s foolish for anyone to say that we can only deal with it so far because of the border.

“The people in the colonia have told us that the bandits group there before they cross the border to rob illegal aliens. We can only deal with the problem by patrolling both areas. You can’t patrol in only one area and expect to be successful,” said Sliwa.

Sliwa said that he has recruited 12 young people who will form a chapter in Colonia Libertad. He said that some of the recruits are being trained in the canyons at night, admittedly a violation of U.S. immigration laws.

“We’re taking them into the canyon area illegally to train them. Then we take them back to the colonia. Obviously, we’re breaking U.S. law,” said Sliwa.