9.1 International Trafficking

Within a year and a half of the fogger’s arrival to US domestic police agencies, BP agents were engaging foreign governments independent of the military on chemical weapons deployment including using thermal foggers. During April 25 - May 9 of 1970, Raymond Dee Bond, a Border Patrol agent with decades of experience, sold $15,000 worth of chemical weaponry to the Mexican federal government (Star Tribune 1973). Included in the cache were multiple pepper foggers and formulations (Star Tribune 1973). Bond was caught and charges with weapons trafficking and acting as a foreign agent without notifying the Secretary of State (United Press International 1972). Although indicted by a federal grand jury, Bond was able to escape prosecution by resigning from his position (Star Tribune 1973).

Given the extensive reach of Border Patrol into Central and South America fueled in particular by the ‘Drug War’ (Chepesiuk 1999), it is reasonable to expect that this was not an isolated event.