■ United States
Former border officer jailed
A former border inspector was sentenced on Thursday to five years in federal prison for guiding hundreds of illegal immigrants through his checkpoint booth in exchange for at least US$70,000 from a smuggling ring. Michael Anthony Gilliland, a 44-year-old former US Marine and a border agent for 16 years, pleaded guilty in September to letting illegal immigrants through San Diego's Otay Mesa port of entry in exchange for bribes. Gilliland and five others coordinated smuggling operations and deliberately failed to record vehicles that carried immigrants through border lanes under his supervision, according to court documents. He was arrested in June. Four co-conspirators have been sentenced to shorter prison terms. A fifth is scheduled to be sentenced later this month.
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