HOUSTON, Texas — A new letter from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) admits that illegal aliens were being allowed to board planes using Notice to Appear forms received after entering the U.S. illegally. The revelation directly contradicts a TSA statement last month denying such allegations to various media outlets, including Breitbart News. In July Breitbart Texas Managing Director Brandon Darby broke the news that the TSA was letting illegal aliens board planes using Notice to Appear forms; subsequently, a TSA spokesperson publicly attacked Darby on Twitter, insisting that his report was “completely wrong.”
The newly-surfaced TSA letter was penned on August 7, according to the Gateway Pundit. It was reportedly sent from the TSA to Rep. Kenny Marchant (R-TX), a member of the Border Security Caucus. The letter confirms that illegal aliens are being allowed to board planes using a Notice to Appear form (also known as I-862), as Darby revealed in July.
Hector Garza, a spokesman for the National Border Patrol Council (NBPC) told Darby that Notice to Appear forms can “easily be reproduced or manipulated on any home computer. The Notice to Appear form has no photo, anyone can make one and manipulate one. They do not have any security features, no watermark, nothing. They are simply printed on standard copy paper based on the information the illegal alien says is the truth.”
According to the Gateway Pundit, the August 7 letter from the TSA admitted, “If a passenger does not have an acceptable form of identification, then the passenger is allowed to present two other forms of identification. One of the two forms of identification must bear the individual’s name and other identifying information such as photo, address, phone number, social security number, or date of birth. TSA may assess a variety of government issued documents to establish passenger identity. The I-862 form may be used along with another form of identification in this instance.”
It continued, “If a passenger can only present a Form I-862, TSA will attempt to establish the passenger’s identity through DHS partner Components, such as U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).”
Despite the letter’s admissions, the TSA had previously insisted that Darby’s report–which detailed the acceptance of Notice to Appear forms at airports–was untrue.
TSA Press Secretary Ross Feinstein took to Twitter to attack Darby and the NPBC. After claiming that Darby’s report was “completely wrong,” Feinstein falsely stated that no one had “contacted us for a statement and/or info before publishing story.”
Darby responded to Feinstein, showing a screenshot which proved that he had, indeed, attempt to reach out to the agency via email prior to the publishing of his article.
The TSA continued to deny Darby’s allegations. The agency said in a statement to multiple news outlets, “These reports are false. A Notice to Appear, issued by the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), is not an acceptable form of ID at the TSA checkpoint.”
Reacting to the TSA’s letter, Border Patrol agent Garza told Breitbart Texas, “Ross Feinstein and the TSA higher ups should apologize to the NBPC and to Brandon Darby for reporting the truth. … The men and women of the Border Patrol reported this very serious situation directly to the TSA managers at the Laredo International Airport, but their concerns were ignored by the TSA. Soon after that, the NBPC was notified by Border Patrol agents of what was taking place at the Laredo International Airport and how the TSA was allowing illegal aliens to board planes with only a Notice to Appear and without verifiable identification.”
He continued, “The NBPC informed the American public of this very serious situation through a news article with Breitbart Texas Managing Director Brandon Darby. If anyone is saying the truth, it is the men and women of the Border Patrol, the NBPC and reporter Brandon Darby for reporting the truth.”
“If the TSA and Ross Feinstein were allowed to continue lying to the American Public, it could have resulted in the next terrorist attack on American soil. We hope that terrorists did not enter our country while TSA was violating these security protocols and while Ross Feinstein continued to deny their actions,” Garza said. “Shame on Ross Feisnten and the TSA for lying to the American Public and for saying that border patrol agents, the NBPC and Brandon Darby were liars.”
The most recent incident is not the first time that the Department of Homeland Security has publicly attacked Darby and the NBPC. On June 4th Breitbart Texas’ Managing Director Brandon Darby broke the news that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) would be relocating illegal immigrants from Texas to California. Within moments of that story being published, the official Twitter account of the San Diego CBP tweeted at Darby, insisting the report was “erroneous” and asking for it to be removed from the internet.
Days later the San Diego CBP deleted the tweet from their official account. Subsequent reports, outlining plans to fly immigrants to Southern California, proved CBP had indeed planned the relocation all along.
Follow Kristin Tate on Twitter @KristinBTate.
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