5 Lawmen, 3 Soldiers Die as Copter Hits Power Lines : Anti-Drug Mission at Border

An Army National Guard helicopter carrying sheriff’s deputies from four counties on an anti-drug surveillance mission near the U.S.-Mexican border crashed into power lines, killing all eight people aboard, officials said today.

The UH-1H helicopter went down in the foothills of the Laguna Mountains at 9:30 p.m. Monday while on patrol for Operation Border Ranger, described as a joint anti-drug smuggling operation conducted by six Southern California sheriff’s departments and the federal government.

The victims included three National Guardsmen--the pilot, co-pilot and crew chief--and two members of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office and one each from Riverside, Orange and Imperial counties, according to a statement issued this morning by the Imperial County Sheriff’s Department.

Two Counties Unaffected

San Bernardino and San Diego counties also participate in the program but had no personnel on board the craft Monday night.

All the victims apparently died instantly when the chopper burst into flames, the statement said.

In Washington, chief Pentagon spokesman Dan Howard said the crash was observed by a spotter helicopter that was flying at a higher altitude.

National Guard Maj. Steve Mensik said the crew was on patrol when it observed a vehicle parked, with lights off, on a remote access road in the Mountain Springs Grade area, about 70 miles east of San Diego and 40 miles from El Centro.

“They were in the process of descending to get a closer look at the suspect vehicle. Apparently, at about 500 feet, they struck a power line that had been strung between two hilltops,” Mensik said.

First Cooperative Effort

He said it was the first time the six sheriff’s departments of Southern California, the National Guard and other federal authorities had teamed up for Operation Border Ranger.

The program has been suspended while the investigation is carried out, he said.

The victims included: Sgt. Richard G. Romero, 39, of El Centro, a 14-year veteran with the Imperial County Sheriff’s Office; Orange County Sheriff’s Deputy Mark Steve Tonkin, 31, of Chino; Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputies Roy A. Chester, 41, and James D. McSweeney, 43, and Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputy Michael D. Davis, 34.

The names of the guardsmen were withheld until relatives could be notified.

Considered Specialists

The deputies were specialists in their field. Tonkin, an Orange County deputy since 1981, was a member of that force’s career criminal apprehension team, said Orange County Sheriff’s Lt. Dick Olson.

Chester and McSweeney from Los Angeles County were both assigned to the narcotics bureau. Both men were 12-year members of the sheriff’s office, said spokesman Deputy Richard Dinsmoor.

The guardsmen and their helicopter were assigned to Company D, 140th Aviation Division, based at Los Alamitos Armed Forces Reserve Center in Los Alamitos, said California Army National Guard spokesman Phil Jordan in Sacramento.

Ocotillo is 40 miles west of El Centro and less than 10 miles from the U.S.-Mexican border.

“It was a very tragic thing that you always certainly are hoping that it’s never going to happen, but it certainly has the opportunity to happen in a mission of this sort because of the dangerousness of the type of terrain that we’re dealing with,” Imperial County Sheriff Oren Fox said.

Imperial County officials last week testified before a legislative committee that their rural, sparsely populated county is a popular crossing point for smugglers running drugs between the border city of Mexicali, Mex., and urban centers such as Los Angeles and San Diego.