A U.S. citizen of Mexican origin denounced of having been a victim of abuse by agents from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), when he tried to cross the border between San Diego and Tijuana this past weekend.

The victim, Francisco Gonzalez, in a press conference said that on Saturday at around 8:45 am he arrived at the pedestrian crossing at the San Ysidro border. Once in the inspection building he tried to move to another line, as he noticed that it was moving along faster. After doing this, a CBP officer ordered him back to the line he was in.

"I asked him the reason why, because I wanted to go to another line that I saw moving faster," he explained.

Immediately, the officer called for backup through his radio. "He knocked me down, threw me to the ground, and knocked me out. I lost consciousness and then I did not know what happened," said Gonzalez.

Later on he woke up in an ambulance in route to the University of California San Diego Hospital, where he was treated. Gonzalez received four stitches around his eye, four more on the chin, has loose teeth and a broken finger.

Gonzalez, who has a disability for which his arm shakes, stressed that at the time of the incident there were several witnesses at the scene waiting to cross the border.

He said that until now federal authorities have not contacted him to explain what happened, and that he will have to pay for the hospital expenses.

Meanwhile, Christian Ramirez, director of the Southern Border Communities Coalition, said it is concerning to see that "everyone is exposed" to these cases of excessive use of force. "It is urgent to control this agency who feels that they have absolute power," he said. "It is no longer just undocumented immigrants, its all of us now" he said.

In the past three years, the Coalition has reported 19 cases of abuse at the border between Mexico and the United States. There has not been any type of sanctions that are known in these cases for the agents who were involved.

CBP had not answered the questions submitted by Efe to explain their version of this incident.

Editorial@Sandiegored.com

Omar.Martinez@Sandiegored.com