A U.S. Border Patrol patch on a border agent’s uniform in McAllen, Texas, on Jan. 15, 2019.
Suzanna Cordeiro/AFP via Getty Images
Authorities in upstate New York arrested a border patrol agent for allegedly forcing multiple women to expose their chests during virtual processing to enter the U.S.
Shane Millan, 53, was arraigned Thursday in Syracuse on charges that he violated women’s constitutional right to to be free from unreasonable searches. He faces four counts of a misdemeanor, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of New York.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York said that on three separate occasions, Millan ordered women seeking admission into the U.S. to undress and expose their bare chests over webcam while on a fourth occasion, a woman’s bra remained on. Each time, Millan allegedly lied to the women that the strip was part of protocol.
“Millan’s demands to see the victims’ breasts were for his own gratification,” the U.S. attorney’s office said in a statement.
The border patrol agent committed the offenses in Jefferson County, near the Canadian border, and “elsewhere,” according to the charging documents.
Millan’s attorney and U.S. Customs and Border Protection did not immediately respond to requests for comment, but in a statement to CNN, CBP said the agency did not tolerate misconduct among its ranks.
“When we discover any alleged or potential misconduct, we immediately refer it for investigation and cooperate fully with any criminal or administrative investigations,” CBP said.
A jury trial is scheduled for Oct. 21, according to court records.
