Scott Warren, college professor and charity worker is facing up to 20 years in prison for helping immigrants with basic needs such as food, water and shelter for the night. He was arrested by border patrol and charged with harbouring illegal aliens and conspiracy to transport and harbour illegal aliens. This is considered a federal felony that could put the accused in jail for a maximum sentence of 20 years.
Warren was arrested mere hours after the border patrol criticized the organization he works with called “No More Deaths.” Among the various things the group commits to, they also leave behind food and water all across the border for the immigrants to find.
In the last year, No More Deaths released a report wherein they had proof that border agents threw 3,856 gallons of water. A video footage was included in the report showing these agents kicking the water around and pouring their out.
In their press release, No More Deaths said: “We document how Border Patrol agents engage in the widespread vandalism of gallons of water left for border crossers and routinely interfere with other humanitarian-aid efforts in rugged and remote areas of the borderlands.”
Mere hours after the press conference, Warren was arrested in one of their safe houses located in the middle of the desert known as ‘the Barn.’ He was providing two immigrants with food and water, and little did he know that border patrol already had this area under surveillance.
“After finding their way to ‘the Barn,’ Warren met them outside and gave them food and water for approximately three days. (One of the migrants) said that Warren took care of them in ‘the Barn’ by giving them food, water, beds and clean clothes,” the charges against Warren read.
Bill Walker, attorney of Warren defended his client by saying his only crime was to help people survive.
“We don’t smuggle them, we don’t do anything to help them enter the United States, we do nothing illegal. This place that they raided is not in the middle of the desert, it’s not hidden anywhere. It’s in the city of Ajo, and it’s been used for a long time, not to help smuggle migrants, but to give medical care and food and water,” Walker mentioned.
Warren is not the first activist that has been arrested for helping people. In fact, eight other humanitarian workers from the same organization are facing similar charges.
While the death toll from border crossing is ultimately unknown, USA Today has reported that over 7,209 lives gone missing while making that arduous journey across the border in the last 20 years. The report also stated that the number is far likely to be higher because “federal authorities largely fail to count border crossers when their remains are recovered by local authorities, and even local counts are often incomplete.”
Check out the video footage take by No More Deaths showing border patrol pouring out water that could most likely save a person’s life.
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