Two former Border Patrol agents were in court Friday in San Diego accused of smuggling Brazilians into the United States.
A federal magistrate judge entered not guilty pleas Friday on behalf of Raul Villarreal-- who at one time was an agency spokesman -- his brother Fidel Villarreal and two others. The defendants were extradited from Mexico on Thursday.
Uniformed Border Patrol agents occupied about half the courtroom seats in a show of disapproval for their former colleagues. Raul Villarreal was an agency spokesman.
The Villarreal brothers stood stone-faced as a clerk read the charges. They include bribery of a public official, conspiracy to bring in illegal aliens for financial gain and witness tampering.
The Brazilians said in court documents that they paid $12,000 each to cross the border illegally.
