On Sept. 16, 2013, Border Patrol Agent Aaron Anaya, 26, of Yuma, Ariz., was sentenced to 60 months in prison. Anaya pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense on April 10, 2013.
On the evening of Dec. 2, 2012, Anaya was driving a fully marked U.S. Border Patrol vehicle and was on duty in his capacity as a Border Patrol Agent patrolling the U.S. international boundary with Mexico. Anaya stopped along the fence line, exited his USBP vehicle and assisted three individuals on the Mexican side of the border in bringing large bales of marijuana over the fence and into the United States. A total of six bales were placed in the vehicle with a combined weight of 146.9 pounds.
That same evening, Anaya’s vehicle, with the marijuana bales inside, was stopped by law enforcement, and Anaya was arrested. At the time of his arrest, Anaya was wearing a USBP- issued uniform and had his service-issued firearm secured in his holster. A USBP-owned automatic rifle was in the front passenger compartment of Anaya’s USBP vehicle as well. Anaya admitted at his change of plea proceeding that he would have utilized one or both of the firearms, if necessary, to protect himself and the marijuana from rival drug traffickers if rival drug traffickers had sought to steal the marijuana before he delivered it to its next destination.