Man killed in ultralight crash

The ultralight plane that crashed Monday morning near San Luis, Ariz., killing the pilot, was involved in an apparent drug-smuggling attempt, according to the U.S. Border Patrol.

"There were several bundles of marijuana visibly strapped to the aircraft," said Agent Karla Davalos, a spokeswoman for the Yuma Sector Border Patrol. "It totaled 141.3 pounds."

The ultralight crashed in a lettuce field on the west side of Highway 95, between County 21st and 22nd streets, said Luis Cebreros, spokesman for the San Luis, Ariz., Fire Department.

"The crash occurred 150 yards east of County 21-1/2 Street and the levy road," Davalos said. "It was north of San Luis and about one mile east of the Colorado River."

The accident occurred at about 7:15 a.m., and was reported by a field worker, according to Robby Rodriguez, a spokesman for Somerton/Cocopah Fire Department.

The San Luis Police Department, Somerton Fire Department, the U.S. Border Patrol, and the Yuma County Sheriff’s Department responded and discovered that the downed aircraft was an “ultralight-style” motorized glider.

Cebreros said the pilot, the sole occupant of the plane, was an unidentified male who was dead at the scene and the cause of the crash was under investigation Monday.

This is the second known smuggling attempt of this nature in two months. Border Patrol and CBP Air Interdiction agents in the Tucson sector last month apprehended a man attempting to fly marijuana into the United States.

According to the Border Patrol, desperate smuggling attempts such as Monday's incident demonstrate the increased level of frustration smuggling organizations are experiencing as a result of the efforts by the Border Patrol to secure our nations borders between the ports of entry.

Added personnel, technology and tactical infrastructure have proven to greatly reduce illegal cross-border activity in many areas, notably in the Yuma Sector, which has seen a 77 percent decrease in illegal cross border activity, the patrol aid.


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James Gilbert can be reached at jgilbert@yumasun.com or 539-6854..