Giordano: Customs Cops Visit Narconews' Conroy

The name Bill Conroy is well known to our regular readers. Through a string of investigative stories in Narco News and the Narcosphere, as well as the online book Borderline Security, Conroy has made things very uncomfortable lately for law enforcement agencies operating along the U.S.-Mexico border. Apparently, so uncomfortable that it has provoked intimidating government harassment, a direct attack on Conroy and press freedom in general.

As Al Giordano reports in the Narcosphere, customs agents from the Department of Homeland Security have come looking for Conroy at both his home and his office (demanding to speak as well with the publisher of the newspaper Conroy edits, a publication that had nothing to do with his reports in Narco News). The agents seem to be trying to both intimidate Conroy out of writing further stories on the Department, as well as force him to give up the name of a source that leaked an internal Homeland Security memo.

http://narcosphere.narconews.com/story/2005/5/24/222740/305

Giordano reports:

"Tuesday, May 24th, after the intimidating visit by cops to the family home – 'I had to explain to my son that I hadn't done anything wrong,' says Conroy - authentic journalist Bill Conroy went to work at his day job, as the mild-mannered and respected editor of a prominent business periodical.

"Bill had left his own cell phone number on the voice mail of Agent Salazar at 210-336-0036. But Salazar didn't bother to call. He preferred, instead, to barge into Conroy's office at 2:30 p.m."

"'I immediately said I was going to record the conversation and showed them the tape recorder. White objected immediately, saying I couldn't do that. 'This is an official investigation.' They both then pulled out their badges, just like in a Dragnet show. I told them I was aware they were there on official business. (The visit to my house the prior day tipped me off to that bit of reality.) I told them I still wanted to record the conversation. They continued to object. I then said I wasn't going to talk with them absent the tape recorder, that whatever they needed they could get from the story that was already published. I then suggested they provide me with their questions in writing and I would look them over and get back to them. They again refused. Salazar then said that he did want to talk about the story. 'I want to know your source,' he said point blank. I said I'm not going to talk beyond what was already in the story.'

"'This got the White guy pissed,' notes Conroy. 'I think he was playing the bad cop role. They both got up to leave. On the way out, White said to Salazar, something to the effect, 'I guess we'll take this to the U.S. Attorney then.''

"Now, what does this tell us about the way that 'Sherlock Salazar' and 'Gee Whizzer White' conduct business on the taxpayer payroll? Apparently, they made these two harassing visits to a prominent journalist, at his family home, and again at his office, without having talked to the U.S. Attorney for that region of Texas. (As one U.S. law enforcement agent told Narco News today, 'that just is not done.')"

There are many more interesting twists to this story. Read the full report on this outrageous attempt to silence a true authentic journalist, at:

http://narcosphere.narconews.com/story/2005/5/24/222740/305

From somewhere in a country called América,

Dan Feder
Managing Editor
The Narco News Bulletin
http://www.narconews.com

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