Napolitano says US, Mexico making headway in curbing the flow of illegal drugs and cash

September 19th, 2009 Gunmen kill illegal migrant in southern MexicoTUXTLA GUTIERREZ, Mexico — Mexican officials say gunmen have attacked a group of illegal immigrants in southern Mexico, killing one and wounding five as well as an alleged people smuggler. According to Mexico's federal preventative police, gunmen fired on a truck carrying the migrants before dawn Saturday along a highway outside the city of Comitan in Chiapas state.

September 16th, 2009 Napolitano lauds successes in US border securityLAS CRUCES, N.M. — The U.S.

September 11th, 2009 Mexico police find over $5 million cash in cargoMEXICO CITY — Mexican authorities say they have found at least $5 million hidden in a shipment of ammonium sulfate at a Pacific coast port, and are still counting the cash. Authorities earlier said the estimated amount was at least $5.4 million.

September 11th, 2009 Mexico police find over $5.4 million cash in cargoMEXICO CITY — Mexican authorities say they have found at least $5.4 million hidden in a shipment of ammonium sulfate at a Pacific coast port, and are still counting the cash. The Mexican navy says the bundles of cash were hidden in large sacks of the granular chemical, most commonly used as a fertilizer.

September 4th, 2009 Ambassador: US must stop flow of arms to MexicoMONTERREY, Mexico — Washington's new ambassador to Mexico says the United States must stop the flow of weapons smuggled south across the border to improve security. Carlos Pascual says "we cannot continue to arm the cartels," referring to guns bought in the United States and sold to drug gangs in Mexico.

August 23rd, 2009 US flies migrants caught in Arizona to Mexico CityMEXICO CITY — The U.S. government has begun flying illegal migrants caught in the Arizona desert back to Mexico under a voluntary repatriation program.

August 11th, 2009 Napolitano announces $30M in fed border grantsHomeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced $30 million in federal grants Tuesday to prevent drug-fueled violence from spilling into the United States from Mexico, heralding it as the latest of several moves in recent months to bolster border enforcement. Law enforcement agencies in Texas will get nearly $13 million, California and Arizona will get more than $7 million each and New Mexico will receive nearly $3 million under the federal Operation Stonegarden program.

July 30th, 2009 Feds seize heroin worth $17 million in CaliforniaSACRAMENTO, Calif. — Authorities say federal drug agents have broken up a narcotics ring responsible for importing heroin valued at $17.5 million into California from Mexico.

June 25th, 2009 Napolitano to Europe, Kuwait for terrorism talksWASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano leaves this weekend for meetings with officials in Europe and Kuwait on counterterrorism issues. At a meeting with reporters Thursday, Napolitano said she will be meeting with her counterparts in Britain as well as officials in Spain, Ireland and Portugal.

June 15th, 2009 US and Mexico agree to improve customsWASHINGTON — The U.S. and Mexico formalized an agreement Monday to work together to secure legal travel and trade across the countries' shared border.

June 9th, 2009 Meltdown 101: Cash to Mexico and the US economyEL PASO, Texas — With the economy struggling through the longest recession since the Great Depression, the steady flow of dollars that immigrants send back to Mexico has also taken a serious hit. Mexico's central bank, which tracks money sent to the country by Mexicans living abroad, announced last month that these "remittances" had dropped by more than 18 percent in the past year, from $2.19 billion in April 2008 to $1.78 billion this April.

June 5th, 2009 New drug war strategy focuses on weapons and cashALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Obama administration officials said Friday they will devote more resources to fighting Mexican drug cartels and use new technology to thwart them while trying to quell the U.S.

April 30th, 2009 Gov't going after hiring of illegalsWASHINGTON — An Obama administration policy to go after employers who knowingly hire and exploit illegal workers is not significantly different from the Bush administration strategy, according to a copy of the guidelines, obtained by The Associated Press. The new guidelines for immigration agents, which the Homeland Security Department calls a "renewed department-wide focus" will impose fines and criminal charges against employers who break the law.

April 29th, 2009 Napolitano retracts 'passive surveillance' termWASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is asserting that the description she initially gave of the border swine-flu monitoring effort no longer applies. Appearing Wednesday before a Senate panel, Napolitano said that "passive surveillance" is "not an accurate picture of what is going on" at U.S.

April 28th, 2009 Gov't: Stern border monitoring not yet necessaryWASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is arguing that "passive surveillance" of the U.S. border with Mexico is sufficient and that tougher monitoring measures are not yet necessary.