United Nations Ammo Company owner Howie Glaser - “Give me back my bullets”
Glaser’s underlying message at the end of the day is “Give me back my bullets!”
On his website, gone is the banner exhorting people to help free the “wrongfully imprisoned” US trucker and in it’s place, a pitch for “golf ball launchers”? That’s right folks, golf ball launchers, a device that attaches to the end of your grandma’s AK-47 or AR-15 and propels golf balls “hundreds of yards” (We imagine it could be made to propel something much more deadly, perhaps of the 40mm variety.)
There’s also two videos of interest on his website. Both are interviews by a moderator from NRA.com part of the National Rifle Association, so you know the slant there.
The first video, Glaser is being interviewed and continuously bemoans the fact of his loss and how devastating it is to him. He mentions this on a 3 to 1 ratio of his concern for the driver.
[youtube_lightbox source=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQ3JwDQVxUM” image=”” title=”Interview with Howie Glaser, owner United Nations Ammo Co.” width=”640″ height=”480″ align=”left”]
It’s nothing you haven’t heard before if you’ve been following this story as we have. The story changes just enough to fit the audience they are targeting.
The second video is also produced by NRA.com and features Carlos Spector, the El Paso attorney “coordinating” things on this side of the border and making certain people are riled up with impotent anger over Bogan’s predicament.
[youtube_lightbox source=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KebCeDJMbec” image=”” title=”Interview with El Paso Attorney Carlos Spector” width=”640″ height=”480″ align=”left”]
Both Glaser and Spector continue to maintain Bogan is being held as a political prisoner, which he is not, at least in the context his supporters want you to believe.
But what is revealing in this case is not what is being said, but what is being sugar coated by Glaser and the others. They type of ammunition that Bogan was carrying.
Glaser continues to maintain that the load was a legal load (which it was, in the US) of munitions used by sportsmen and hunters and consisted of 250,000 rounds of .308 cartridges and 18,000 rounds of .223 ammo packed in 16 cases of 1200 rounds, which if it hadn’t been lost, would be sold out in a days time. He scoffs at the idea that these munitions would fit the weapons used by the drug gangs in Mexico, and, depending on what day it is and who he is talking to, the ammo is also for sniper rifles and M-14 Ceremonial rifles, of the type used at military funerals.
What Glaser doesn’t want people to know, especially those that might otherwise believe that this load of ammunition is for hunters is that the .308 winchester cartridge also carries a NATO designation, 7.62mm. And while it may not work in the AK-47, it functions perfectly well in other assault style weapons found in Mexico and used by the drug gangs, such as, perhaps, the H&K G3? The drug gangs in Mexico are not married to any particular type and style of weapon, although the AK is preferred because of it’s ease of use and power. The bad boys in Mexico will take anything they can get their hands on sent to them from the US.
The argument is moot though. The 9 pallets of ammunition is gone, confiscated and according to a friend of mine who is a well regarded criminal defense attorney in Mexico City, will not be returned. Ditto on the rig that Bogan was driving. It was used in the commission of a crime.
As for Bogan? The same attorney advised me that it will take anywhere from 6 to 9 months for a judgment to be made in the case. It could take longer but he’d be very surprised if it took less time. And Bogan will probably receive the minimum sentence of 5 years. Depending on the goodwill of the Mexican government, Bogan could be handed over to US authorities to serve his sentence in a US facility, where of course, he would immediately be eligible for parole.
Spector, Glaser and everybody else claiming to support Bogan keep mentioning that it being a Presidential election year in Mexico, that Bogan is being used as a “political pawn”, an assertion that is ridiculous to say the least. Coverage of this case has all but died out in the Mexican media. Information will not be publicly available from the government agencies involved in this until after July 1st, the date of the elections. Article 41 of Mexico’s election laws prohibits dissemination or propaganda from government agencies in the 90 days leading up to voting. This includes information about Bogan’s case, which would otherwise be available. This is why the majority of the information out there is “spin” by the supporters of Bogan and common sense and logical analysis from the rest of us attempting to counter the spin and the resulting hysteria.
And we can expect more of all of it until the officials in Mexico are permitted by law to reveal the results of their investigation. Hopefully, during the next 45 days, while there is a continuing blackout of information from Mexico, Bogan won’t be hurt too much as his supporter inflame the public using the race card and try this case in the Court of Public Opinion, not that it will do them any good.
Oh, and for the record, Howie Glaser didn’t specifically say “Give me back my bullets” but he might have well had said it, putting a link to the Lynard Skynard video by the same name.
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About Author
PMC
35 years in the trucking business and living in Mexico for the past 15 years, make me uniquely qualified to offer my insight and opinion into the Mexican trucking industry and other border issues. A contributor to SiriuxXM Road Dog Channel 106 and to the award winning Lockridge Report, Mexico Trucker Online continues to publish the unvarnished truth about the subjects we cover.
PMC- You are obviously a propagandist for the Mexican government. You are spinning your so-called “facts” to suit the agenda that you’ve been hired to promote. Are you seriously suggesting that Jabin Bogan should serve at least 5 years in prison for inadvertently hauling a legitimate load of ammunition into Mexico? How have you already determined his guilt? Why are you choosing to ignore significant facts that can be independently verified with documentation? Why are you making libelous statements about the owner of UN Ammo Company? Why is it a bad thing to be in business and want to recover an order you placed LEGALLY and paid for in full to the tune of $100,000.00? Does this really mean that Howie Glaser doesn’t care about the fate of Jabin Bogan? Really??? Well, the answer is obvious: You are a resident of Mexico (perhaps a citizen as well) and have been selected by your government to counteract the bad press that Mexico is receiving in the United States because your government made a huge mistake and needs to save face. I, for one, am glad to be a U.S. citizen who lives in a country where you are innocent until proven guilty, can speak freely under the 1st Amendment of the Constitution, have the right to bear arms (with certain limitations) under the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution, and have due process of law to protect me.
You need to go back to the drawing board and get your facts straight before you spew your nonsense.
“Interested Party” - If you have heard Porter talk, he is the last person you would confuse with a Mexican (he is even a veteran that has served in the U.S. military). There is no “agenda” on our side - It is strictly a Rule of Law matter where a driver bringing an illegal load into a country should be taken into custody, no matter whether it is the United States or Mexico. Jabin Bogan lied about U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers directing him to turn around in Mexico, the “corruption” starts with him.
As such, Demco is responsible for the failed delivery, and the costs involved (they were insured, right?). Americans would expect CBP officers (whom Jabin maligns) to take a driver into custody if they bring an illegal load into the United States, so why are we asking Mexico to treat our citizens any differently? Keep your “obviously” comments out of the discussion, you are trying (unsuccessfully) to politicize this incident by alluding that Mexican officials are corrupt for enforcing their laws.
You’re out of arguments - You can’t say that I am not a U.S. citizen or that I hate truckers, and you can only delete opposing comments on your site…
How droll, and slightly humorous. Amazing how you seem to know so much about what is happening on the southern border from your basement in Poughkeepsi, NY.
PMC, I can well understand why the guy who lost $100,000 worth of ammo he had paid for is upset and doing everything he can think of to try and make a stink and recoup his loss. I can understand why the owner of the rig Bogan was driving is upset and is doing everything he can think of to get his property - and his employee - back. I can also understand why the “gun community” here in the states is outraged about Mexican authorities and the media making a big deal over what was pretty clearly a mistake on the part of the driver.
What I don’t understand is why you are prattling disparagingly about all of the above. Perhaps folks are overreaching in their assertions that there are political motives behind the handling of this matter. Perhaps the evil capitalists really are more worried about their bottom line than about the directionally-challenged driver who cost them so much money. And yes, you are correct that 7.62 NATO is a popular military round, but that fact has not been hidden or denied by anyone. The point people have tried to make is that it is not the round used in AK47s as has been widely and repeatedly reported by Mexican authorities and the media. It is a round that is not in high demand by Mexican criminals because they don’t have a lot of guns that shoot it.
No one knows exactly how Bogan ended up in Mexico or what he was thinking when he crossed over, but there are only a couple of options:
1. Bogan had a brilliant plan to hijack his own load and sell it to Mexican criminals - apparently with no passport and a truck not licensed to operate in Mexico, but which had a GPS tracker so good that it alerted his boss that it was in Mexico while the truck was still being searched at the border.
2. Bogan was in cahoots with his boss and maybe the Phoenix ammo dealer to try and “accidentally” slip across the border and deliver 9 pallets of ammo weighing more than a Cadillac to Mexican drug thugs. In a truck not licensed to operate in the country and with no papers or cover-story.
3.Bogan was confused and embarrassed (and perhaps just plain stupid) and was hoping to get turned around and back on course in the US without anyone noticing…
I think options 1 and 2 look pretty unlikely and option 3 seems pretty reasonable.
By the way, no one except his boss has heard Bogan’s story straight from the horses mouth, and that was only during a brief and confused telephone conversation as this drama was just getting started. There has never been a claim that he was told by US Border Patrol to go on through and turn around in Mexico. The story was that when he realized he was going the wrong way he “asked a cop” who told him he could turn around a couple of miles up the road. Maybe that “cop” was a part-time, uniformed security guard having car trouble on the side of the road 5 miles away from the border; we don’t know and we can’t ask Bogan. We do know that the highways around El Paso are a confusing mess and it’s rather easy to find yourself on the bridge with no easy way back to civilization.
The point is, it’s pretty clear that Bogan was not intentionally trying to smuggle ammunition to drug dealers in Mexico so it’s pretty ridiculous that he’s being treated as if he was.
Why are you attacking and impugning those who are raising questions about the incident?
Either Bogan is a really bad smuggler and deserves the treatment he’s getting, or he’s just a stupid truck driver who’s paid a pretty hefty price for his stupidity and Mexico is being jerks.
And, yes, I do believe that if a Mexican truck driver made a similar mistake that once it was established that he was a reputable driver working for a reputable company carrying a legally consigned load from a reputable supplier to a reputable customer, US Customs and Border Protection would pack him back up and turn him around with nothing more than a warning. If they tried to do more, we’d cry foul and make a stink about it.
@JeffKnox There are elements to Jabin Bogan’s account that can quickly be invalidated. The Bridge of the Americas in El Paso only has a marked, short entrance for southbound traffic to Mexico. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers (not Border Patrol agents) will usually be present in at least one vehicle just ahead of the initial booths (it is the only “free bridge” in the El Paso area) for Mexico, stationed right by the return gate for making u-turns. Since that location is still well within the United States, there are not Mexican personnel allowed forward of their booths.
CBP reports no contact with Jabin that day. CBP officers that he would have passed immediately before the Mexican entrance are right at a return gate, and they can turn vehicles around, even a truck. Look up images on Google Maps/Streetview to confirm it is how I am relating it.
You might want a Mexican driver in reversed circumstances to be released, but the American public reacts very badly to similar incidents. Allen Smith and others taking the side that Jabin Bogan should be immediately released are injecting bad-mouthing of Mexico into the event, and deleting opposing comments from the debate. Jabin should not have started out by lying, especially trying to implicate U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in his failure as a truck driver to follow marked signs that warn imprisonment and fines can occur for bringing gun and/or ammunition into Mexico.
If it takes however long of sitting in a jail cell awaiting trial to come to that realization, I am all for his continued education…
@ibmmuseum As I pointed out in my original comment, the story that Bogan’s boss said Bogan told him, was that he “asked a cop” how to turn around and was told he could go a couple of miles up the road. There was no clarification as to what kind of cop or where this occurred. It could have been long before the border, or it could have been a misunderstanding between Bogan and his boss.
Bogan has not had an opportunity to tell his story other than the phone call with his boss. He probably won’t have an opportunity to tell it for several more months.
Would Bogan even know exactly what was in his truck? (I don’t know anything about truck driving.)
There have been occasions in recent years where entire shipping containers of Chinese machine guns were caught at Customs. They caused a fluff, but the captain of the ship wasn’t arrested, and the guns are eventually returned to the Chinese factory that “mistakenly” sent full-auto AKs instead of semi-auto AKs.
Also, I’ve heard that Bogan’s cargo was not insured. Don’t know if that’s true or not. Again, I don’t know anything about trucking.
Jeff
@JeffKnox It would be extremely helpful for you to become familiar with the roadways just north of the Bridge of the Americas in El Paso. My friend Porter has also mapped out on this very site how nothing of Jabin’s story matches up with the actual geography. You are correct that you do not know anything about truck driving: A driver is supposed to be aware of the load they are carrying, especially for hazardous cargo and how to react to events that may affect the load.
Jabin Bogan related as what he identified as a CBP officer specifically told him to turn around in Mexico. It was direct enough of a reference that CBP officials felt the need to state they had no contact with Jabin that day. U.S. Consulate representation has been allowed (per international agreement) to visit Jabin, and their advice is going to be much more critical than the spin that Jabin’s boss at Demco is trying to put on this international incident.
Stop the whitewashing, and let’s get serious…
@ibmmuseum What whitewashing?
Either Jabin had criminal intent or he made a stupid mistake.
I think the evidence is pretty clear that he had no criminal intent.
Unless you’ve seen something I haven’t then you’re making an assumption based on the government’s reaction.
As I have said and repeated, the only story we have came from Bogan’s boss based on a brief phone conversation while Mexican authorities were searching the truck, and the story was that at some unspecified point in this adventure Bogan realized he needed to turn around and “asked a cop.”
It is reasonable for CBP to check to see if any of their people had had contact with a lost truck driver that day, but there was no claim from Bogan or his boss that it was a CBP officer that he spoke with, just that at some point he “asked a cop.” I don’t see that this detail has any specific bearing on the case. We didn’t hear the claim from Bogan anyway.
I have personally been stuck on the road to the bridge in El Paso and just barely managed to bail off at the last exit. It can be very dicey and people unfamiliar can freak out and do stupid things. Hell, just look at how some people fall apart at TSA checkpoints in airports.
Bottom line: Either Bogan was intentionally trying to smuggle ammo into Mexico, or he made a stupid mistake. If the former, burn him. If the latter, stop the BS, slap the guy on the wrists, and send him home with a stern warning.
Do you believe that Bogan crossed the border with criminal intent?
Do you believe that a missed exit and confusion at the border deserves YEARS in a Mexican prison?
@JeffKnox Thanks for a well thought out comment, especially seeing who you are associated with. It is appreciated.
1. I can fully understand where Glaser would be pissed about losing $100k worth of product. No disagreement there.
2. You are correct also about Bogan’s boss being the only one hearing his story, and from personal experience managing drivers, including drivers like Bogan with little experience, a driver tends to lie his ass off to his boss or managers when he screws up. And one could imagine Bogan doing this with his boss to put himself in the best light and deflect blame to a nonexistent “official” who directing him to cross the border to turn around (Ridiculous) deflects the blame from Bogan.
3.I doubt if Bogan planned on smuggling that load into Mexico but then the question remains, why in the hell was he anywhere close to the border? Considering his routing in El Paso, he should have been nowhere near any border crossing.
4. At the end of the day, what his supporters refuse to acknowledge is Bogan’s guilt. He crossed the load into Mexico. The load is a prohibited item in Mexico. He was charged as such and is guilty as charged.
5. Personally, I don’t think “Wrong Way” Bogan deserves 5 years in the pen. However, Mexico has the right to enforce their laws. 5 years is the minimum. Most likely though, when this case is adjudicated, Bogan will receive time served, which will be 6-12 months in the end.
6. The truck can be seized as being used in the commission of a crime. Will it be? Who can say.
7. The ammunition will not be returned. Again, it is prohibited in Mexico except for members of law enforcement and the military. Glaser has recourse though. DEMCO is responsible for the loss and whether or not DEMCO has cargo insurance is immaterial. Cargo insurance would cover theft, loss or damage. None applies here. So Glaser can sue Demco and may or may not recover anything.
At least half of the things in this article are flat out lies, and at least another quarter are twists to intentionally mislead. Thanks for making the corruption of the mexican government somehow the fault of a businessman and a joke of the imprisonment of a completely innocent political prisoner. You’re a monster and a liar.