Tecate

A Border Patrol agent was injured Friday when a van that had been stopped by agents near Tecate made a getaway, dragging him about 100 yards.

Agent Paul Kleine was taken at 9:30 a.m. by Life Flight helicopter to UC San Diego Medical Center, where he was treated for a shoulder injury and severe head cuts.

The metallic blue van, suspected of carrying illegal aliens, escaped back into Mexico. The Border Patrol has notified police in Mexico to watch for a van matching the description. The van had no license plates.

The incident began when two agents stopped a van they saw drive from the Mexican side of the border across a field about a mile east of the Tecate border crossing, said Gene Smithburg, assistant chief patrol agent.

“This is a notorious area for smuggling and any vehicle you see crossing somewhere besides the port of entry must be doing something illegal,” Smithburg said.

Smithburg said the van stopped without a chase. When the agents approached the driver to question him, the man opened his door.

“The door was open and one of our agents apparently got caught in it when the van took off,” Smithburg said. “I don’t know the details for sure, but then he probably became untangled and let go. In situations like this, you don’t know whether to hang on or let go.”

Smithburg said the agents reported seeing what they believe were illegal aliens lying in the back of the vehicle.

“We have a lot of these illegal drive-throughs, people smuggling a group into the United States,” Smithburg said. “And this case is typical. They just make a U-turn once they start being chased or see some type of trouble. They just escape back into Mexico and wait for another opportunity.”

Smithburg said drive-through smuggling occurs daily throughout the area, especially near the Otay Mesa crossing.