Border Patrol Recruits in Utah

None by KCPW

(KCPW News) The U.S. Border Patrol is look for 88-hundred good men and women, and last week the recruitment effort came to Utah. Border Patrol Recruiter Jared Thompson says the big push for new agents is a result of 9-11 and new border security initiatives:

"The awareness that people are having about the border and illegal immigration has definitely increased people's interest in the border," says Thompson. "Ten years ago I would tell people I was a border patrol agent and they weren't quite sure what that was."

Thompson says all new recruits will end up on the southern U.S. border guarding the long line of desert and fence from terrorists, drug smugglers and illegal aliens, Border patrol jobs pay 35 to 75 thousand dollars a year and require physical fitness and Spanish language skills. About a dozen Utahns showed up to apply, including Sherri Ashworth:

"It just looks like a really interesting job. And just watching the 9-11. . . I'd just like to help my country out," says Ashworth.

Thompson says efforts by volunteer minutemen groups has also helped bring awareness and funding to U.S. border patrol efforts. He notes that while the focus is on America's southern border, new recruits are often promoted after a few years and transferred to less-grueling work on the northern border.

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