Cameron County plans to install some new technology on the Veterans International Bridge in Brownsville and the Free Trade Bridge in Los Indios to help stop vehicles fleeing the United States into Mexico.
The Grab-350 Integrated Vehicle Barrier System allows officers on international bridges to deploy a net system that pops up and stops the vehicle in its tracks.
“The Global Forfeiture System allows law enforcement agencies in Cameron County to work with CBP (Customs and Border Protection) on task forces and ultimately share in seized assets,” said Pete Sepulveda Jr., County Administrator. “The Global Grab System compliments the county and CBP’s investment in technology over the past two years.”
Cameron County commissioners approved the purchase at Tuesday’s commissioners court meeting after watching a presentation from Paul Bazzano, vice president of sales and business development for Global Grab Technologies. The barrier system for both bridges will cost an estimated $2,179,903, documents show.
In the year On Aug. 20, a Cameron County sheriff’s deputy inadvertently drove into Mexico while chasing a car that failed to pull over for questioning, the sheriff’s department said in a press release.
According to the press release, the incident happened at the Veterans International Bridge in Brownsville.
The deputy, who has not been identified, was assigned to the bridge’s auto theft unit when the driver of the green car pulled up and the deputy noticed the vehicle had fake license plates, according to the press release.
Although the deputy ordered the vehicle to stop, the driver refused to do so, crashing into a utility pole and driving in the direction of Matamoros, according to the release.
Bazzano cites this incident as an example of how the network defense prevented the vehicle from crossing into Mexico.
“We’re very excited because this is a very innovative project; Cameron County will be the first in the United States to install this system on an outbound vehicle filter…it’s a less-than-lethal solution,” Bazzano said.
Bazzano said the federal government is also using the system. “DHS (Department of Homeland Security) facilities are currently using and CBP has found it to be a very successful integrated product.”
CBP began using the system in April on inbound lines at the Veterans International Bridge, and “the reason a port runner is coming to the United States is not because of the bottlenecks it creates,” Bazzano said.
“This technology allows for vehicles that transit illegal money, illegal proceeds, firearms, other weapons and stolen vehicles, and to help people who go missing and enter Mexico,” Bazzano said.
According to the CBP, 80% to 90% of stolen vehicles from Bunnsville, McAllen, Laredo and El Paso end up in Mexico.
“When a vehicle enters the bridge area, the license plate recognition system automatically signals and gives the system the ability to stop the vehicle,” Bazzano said, as the barrier system can be integrated with the license recognition system on the international bridge.
Activating the barrier as the vehicle attempts to exit and cross the bridge can be done over the radio or by an officer on the bridge.
“We were able to stop stolen vehicles from crossing into Mexico, imagine a situation where you have an Amber Alert, a system where you have someone who ultimately stops the vehicle from crossing from the US into Mexico,” Bazzano said.
The barrier system includes tire shredding so that when a vehicle tries to cross the bridge, it first encounters the shredding that cuts off all four tires before the vehicle approaches the grid, Bazzano said. As soon as the system is activated, signs and symptoms are also placed on drivers.
“In the history of this solution, we have never had a single death, and as I said, vehicles hit our defense system at a distance of 70 kilometers,” said Bazzano.
