September 30, 2002
By Jon Bonné
Stomping through the underbrush on his way to the nation’s northern frontier, U.S. Border Patrol agent-in-charge Carl Ecklund points to a pile of droppings and issues a warning to be on the lookout for bears. “Yeah, pretty fresh, too,” says Forest Service special agent Bill McConnell. It’s a momentary diversion. These agents are hunting much bigger prey: drug smugglers, illegal immigrants, even terrorists.