BROWNSVILLE, Texas — Despite much raucous on social media, less than five protesters arrived at the Veteran’s International Bridge near the Texas-Mexico border, claiming that “cartel threats” had kept many away. However, those threats fell apart after further investigation by Breitbart Texas.
During the demonstration, Rob Schupp, who claimed to be one of the organizers, said that the group had received threats over the phone and on social media.
This reporter reached out to high-ranking Mexican federal law enforcement officials in Reynosa, who said that they had not received any intelligence memos or files regarding a threat made against the protesters.
“You know I’m just saying, I’m just telling you what I’ve heard I’ve only received one phone call one threatening phone call so other than that,” Schupp said. He said that around 6 a.m. he got a call from a man asking him if the protest had been cancelled. According to Schupp, when he said that a few were going to protest the man on the line told them not to go.
“That’s the only thing that I’ve personally got,” Schupp said. “I don’t really take the threat seriously some of them did, I respect their decision.”
Breitbart Texas contributor Bob Price asked Schupp why the event was cancelled at 4 a.m. over a threat that he received at 6 a.m. Schupp replied that by the time he got his threat the event had already been cancelled.
“As far as what they were getting I don’t know I see the cancelation and the text messages and the missed phone calls and so that’s really as much as I know,” Schupp said. “It didn’t really happen here in Texas, it happened more in California where we had the threats.”
When asked about the rumor of militia members getting involved in the protest, which put law enforcement on guard, the organizer said it all started with a local TV station called KRGV.
“KRGV, Channel 5, local media–that’s where it came from they put out a story saying that we were bringing bombs and 18-wheelers to blow up the bridges which is completely false,” Schupp said. “I have no Idea where someone would have come up with a story like that.”
He added that he thinks it is amazing how much of a law enforcement presence responds to a couple of protesters versus securing the border.
A Texas law enforcement official told this reporter that in his opinion the claims of cartel violence sounded more like an excuse for a failed protest.
Follow Ildefonso Ortiz on Twitter @IldefonsoOrtiz.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.