Congressman defends ICE's rescue of Mexican citizen kidnapped in Juarez

Congressman Silvestre Reyes, whose office called U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for assistance in rescuing a Mexican citizen kidnapped in Mexico, has issued a statement concerning the incident -- which was first reported by Narco News.

The initial Narco News report indicated that the kidnapping victim was Reyes' sister-in-law. A subsequent report by Narco News, based on a leaked ICE document, indicated that the victim, Erika Posselt, was Congressman Reyes' "relative," but was silent on the precise nature of the relationship.

In a report today by the El Paso Times' Diana Washington Valdez, Posselt is identified as the "niece" of Reyes' wife.

"Reyes said he learned of Posselt's kidnapping when his sister-in-law called them to see if Reyes' office could do anything to help," Washington Valdez reported. [Emphasis added.]

Following is the Congressman's official media statement, delivered by his official front man, Vincent Perez:

Congressman Silvestre Reyes

16th District of Texas

Chairman, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence

P R E S S R E L E A S E FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 27, 2008

CONTACT: Vincent M. Perez: (202) 225-4831 or (202) 225-2912 (cell)

Statement by Rep. Reyes Spokesman

Washington, D.C. - The following statement was released by the Office of Congressman Silvestre Reyes, following reports that a relative of Rep. Silvestre Reyes was kidnapped in Juárez, Mexico. This statement may be attributed to Vincent Perez, a spokesman for Congressman Silvestre Reyes:

"Congressman Reyes is grateful that the victim is safe. The kidnapping victim is not the Congressman's sister-in-law, as has been reported. The victim, whom the Congressman has never met, is a distant relative of the Congressman's wife, and it does not appear that she was targeted because of her connection to the Congressman's relatives.

"Whenever the Office of Congressman Silvestre Reyes is notified of a potential criminal matter, the incident is immediately reported to law enforcement, particularly when an individual may be in imminent danger. This kidnapping was reported to Congressman Reyes's district office by the victim's family, who are citizens of the United States and constituents of the 16th District of Texas. The Congressman's staff immediately notified law enforcement authorities. We notify law enforcement in these circumstances without regard to the victim's identity, country of citizenship, or legal status.

"Congressman Reyes was informed of the incident by his staff after law enforcement had been notified. While the Congressman was kept apprised of the situation, he had no other role. Any suggestion that Congressman Reyes somehow influenced the actions of law enforcement is false.

"As always, the Congressman is appreciative of the efforts by law enforcement officers, on both sides of the border, which led to the victim's safe return."

Congressman Reyes’ can only hope that his memory is not foggy about meeting his wife’s niece and that some long forgotten photographs of him at her Quinceanera don’t suddenly find their way to the press.

Regardless, it seems not everyone is buying the good Congressman’s explanation. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a nonprofit group focused on ethics and accountability in government, issued the following press statement today:

Today, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff asking for an investigation into Immigration and Custom Enforcement's (ICE) recent efforts in procuring the release of a Mexican woman kidnapped in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. ...

CREW is asking Secretary Chertoff to immediately order an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding ICE's involvement in the matter to determine the nature of the inquiry by Cong. Reyes' office, whether ICE had the legal authority to intercede in this matter, why ICE chose to get involved in this matter, whether the State Department was consulted, and whether ICE has offered assistance in other cases involving foreign nationals kidnapped on foreign soil.

CREW's executive director Melanie Sloan stated, "While the release of any kidnapping victim is always a positive development, this matter raises serious questions about whether ICE acted appropriately here." Sloan continued, "Did ICE officials assist in resolving a foreign kidnapping simply because the victim is related to a powerful member of Congress? While Congressman Reyes undoubtedly was overwhelmed by concern for his relative, officials with more objectivity should have been considering the greater political and policy issues raised by ICE's intercession."

Stay tuned....

UPDATE: The Associated Press is now reporting that Congressman Reyes is describing the kidnapping victim "as the aunt of his sister-in-law's son's wife." If that's true, then it all seems to boil down to Reyes' sister-in-law after all, since that seems to be the big constant here.

And despite all the family tree confusion to date, the underlying question remains: Why did ICE — after receiving a call from a Congressman's office — get involved in assisting a Mexican citizen who was kidnapped in Juarez? Until that question is answered to everyone's satisfaction, this story will likely continue to grow, given the current political environment surrounding the Mexican/American border.

UPDATE II: The New York Times now weighs in and approves of Narco News' publication of the ICE memo:

"United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, helped the Mexican authorities pursue the case, and an internal ICE memorandum, much of it confirmed in interviews with American officials, says the congressman, Representative Silvestre Reyes, facilitated the release [of the kidnapping victim]."

Whoo! For a while, I was worried they wouldn't approve.

But I better tread lightly here, because somebody's out looking for leakers (wonder if that's similar to keggers?) ... from the El Paso Times:

"Reyes said the investigation was compromised with the release of the ICE memo, and that the Office of the Inspector General has begun an investigation to find out how it was leaked to the news media."

Now, since neither the New York Times — nor the Associated Press, the Washington Times or Fox News — have credited Narco News for breaking the story about the memo in their recent coverage, we can only assume they obtained the memo themselves short of printing it off the Web site of Narco News, which published it online days before any of these mainstream media giants came to the plate.

So, I guess we're all in this together when those mean-old OIG agents come hunting for a scalp to hang on a pole. We all hang together, or we all hang separately, right?

Who woulda thunk, little ol' me in the same bed as the media bigfeet ... now move over, you stink and are hogging too much space!

UPDATE III: And now another one jumps into the bed: The Washington Post....

"A leaked ICE memo stated that Reyes's office contacted ICE's assistant attache in Ciudad Juarez on June 19. That federal official then arranged meetings with Chihuahua State Police, contacted the state's attorney general, briefed FBI and ICE officials in Mexico City, and coordinated technical support."