The San Diego County Sheriff's Department received about $5 million in federal economic stimulus funds to hire deputies to fight border-related crime, it was announced today.
The two-year grant, through the U.S. Department of Justice, will pay for 16 deputies, one evidence technician and one district attorney working border-related crimes full-time, Sheriff William Gore told the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.
He cited the recent murder of Robert Rosas Jr., a Border Patrol Agent gunned down while on duty near the Mexican border in Campo, as evidence of the "very real threat" of border crime.
"My deputies are ready to attack this problem and this money will allow us to do it full-time," Gore said.
The grant will fund "Operation Vise Grip," which is aimed at controlling, reducing and preventing criminal narcotics activity and violence along the U.S. and Mexico border.
