Mexican official fired in White House BlackBerry caper

A Mexican official allegedly swiped half a dozen or more BlackBerrys belonging to his White House counterparts during a U.S.-Mexico summit this week, according to news reports. The theft is said to have taken place during the North American Leaders' Summit in New Orleans between President Bush, Mexican President Felipe Calderon and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Rafael Quintero Curiel, a member of Calderon's press office, allegedly took six or seven BlackBerrys belonging to White House staff from a table outside a room in the hotel where Mexican officials were meeting with Bush, according to a report in Fox News. The U.S. officials had been required to leave the devices before entering the high-level meeting, and discovered them missing when the meeting concluded.

The U.S. Secret Service is said to have caught Quintero Curiel pocketing the devices on a surveillance video. Mexican media confirmed the story and Mexican officials told The Times today that Quintero Curiel was fired after he returned to Mexico. According to Fox News, the Secret Service caught up with him at the airport, where he "said it was purely accidental, gave [the BlackBerrys] back, claimed diplomatic immunity and left New Orleans with the Mexican delegation." Mexican officials who asked not to be named told The Times that Quintero Curiel said he had picked up the BlackBerrys because he believed they belonged to the Mexican delegation. The matter is being investigated, the official said.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said at a news conference today that she didn't know whether the BlackBerrys contained any sensitive material. Quintero Curiel was the vice director of Calderon's advance team. He earned the equivalent of about $48,000 a year, according to public records.

Friday morning update:

Mr. Quintero Curiel called The Times in Mexico City this morning to draw our attention to his statement attempting to clarify the affair. In essence, he calls the whole thing a misunderstanding. He says he left the meeting (which officials say involved Presidents Bush and Calderon) and found two BlackBerrys that had been left behind by their owners. Unable to determine who they belonged to, he took them with him and gave them to another Mexican official at the New Orleans airport, asking the official to return them to their owners. When confronted by U.S. agents at the airport, he explained everthing to them, and they confirmed his story, he says, and thanked him. "I hope that this matter will be clarified quickly so that I can continue with my daily duties," he said.

-- Héctor Tobar in Mexico City

Comments

[Marcus Garvey]

Sorry, Ed. Gotta agree with Lois. You're just waaaaaay too sensitive... whatsa matter? How many aliens do you employ.. and are you afraid ICE will come after them (and give you a hefty fine)? If you're in S. Cal., I don't think you have to worry. If you're in Oklahoma, then I understand completely. Take some Valium with a vodka chaser. You need it.

[Ed]

Wow it's so nice to see that racism and immigrant bashing is alive and well in this country. All you got to do is put some story out about some other ethnic race doing something wrong and all the idiots come running out with stones. I'm not here to say that this Mexican official is guilty or not. I don't know and I could care less. But to hear such ignorant talk from possibly my neighbors is soooo enticing. You would think we were back in the 1800's. Sorry that these people fill all your restaurants, hotels, gardens and every petty crap job out there. But the last time I checked you don't see allot of legal citizens jumping over each other to do them. You talk about illegal aliens. Tell me Lois did the Pilgrims have green-cards? Who are the real immigrants? The fact is that almost every race has played the peon throughout America's so called glorious history. The blame game is bit old. The issues of immigration are allot more complicated than you think. I'm not going to dive deep in it but I can tell you this. If America is going to advertise itself as the most advanced diverse nation in the world, I believe we need to check our own selves first.

[Lois]

I can't wait for them to take over our country...oops! They already have. It's just that we don't understand their culture. We must be more understanding and "giving." Afterall, we haven't given enough with our emergency rooms overflowing and closing because they get freebies...3 or 4 heart transplants...and nowBlackberries. Isn't Mexico the 5th richest country in Latin Amer? When they takeover, this is what they are bringing with them. Sorry, Mexicanos and illegal aliens, we usually look for improvements when someone takes over, not degradation. Sit with that!

[Nestor]

I thik all the pilitics in Mexico are the same
In Mexico you can get away with that, they do it all the time.. He probaly will be out of a Job for a week then he will be back in another goverment position, He may even be related to Calderon .

In mexico to get a job in the goverment you have to be a relative of somebody very high.

[OC News Watcher]

He was "fired"? There should be an investigation in order to learn why he wanted the phones. Was he looking to get the information off of them? This sounds more like "spying" rather than "theft".