Five Killed, Six Injured in South Georgia Attacks
RUSS BYNUM
Associated Press Writer


TIFTON, Ga. (AP) -- Five men were killed and at least six other people were wounded in what appeared to be a string of robberies targeting Hispanic immigrants at trailer parks in and around the city early Friday, authorities said.

Some of the victims were beaten with an aluminum baseball bat found at one of the crime scenes, and at least one of the victims was shot, Colquitt County Sheriff Al Whittington said.

Police were looking for two black men in the attacks, but Whittington stressed the attacks appeared to be robberies, not hate crimes.

All the dead were immigrants from Mexico, and all but one belonged to the same family, said Francisco Dominguez, who says his uncle and a cousin were killed in their trailer on the outskirts of town.

''He came here to work and here is where he died,'' Dominguez said of his uncle, who immigrated from Mexico a year ago. ''He should have gone out to build chicken houses this morning.''

The attacks took place in southern Georgia, about 180 miles south of Atlanta. Three of the attacks were in Tift County _ two within Tifton city limits _ and one in neighboring Colquitt County.

''We think they're tied together,'' said Colquitt County Sheriff's Capt. Hal Suber.

Among the injured, at least two were in critical condition, said Mike Lewis, a GBI agent.

In the Colquitt County attack, a man was shot in the head and beaten with a baseball bat, and his wife was hit in the mouth, Suber said. The man was in stable condition at a hospital in Thomasville. The woman has been released, Whittington said.

Whittington added the attacks might be linked to other robberies of immigrants in the past two weeks, including some in neighboring Cook County to the east.

Immigrants ''carry large sums of cash and that makes them an easy prey,'' Whittington said. ''I don't think it has anything to do with race or hate.''

Hispanics in the area fear otherwise, said the Rev. Alfonso Gutierrez of Our Divine Saviour Church, the only Catholic church in Tifton.

''There is a lot of fear because people wonder up to what point it could be a race question,'' Gutierrez said. ''It's a vulnerable community.''

Many immigrants are undocumented and therefore can't open bank accounts, which means they tend to carry a lot of cash or keep it in their homes. They are also afraid to call the police when threatened _ even in these killings, those who found the bodies hesitated to call 911, Gutierrez said.

Tift and Colquitt counties are home to at least 14,000 immigrants from Mexico and Central America who work on cotton and peanut farms, said Luz Marti, a volunteer with Gutierrez' church. Census data indicates that Hispanics make up at least 11 percent of Colquitt County's population and at least 8 percent of Tift County's residents.

''They're panicking,'' Marti said, adding that lack of Spanish-language media beyond a small, bi-weekly two-page supplement to the Tifton Gazette makes the community especially jittery.

At Town & Country Mobile Homes in Tifton, two bodies were found by a 14-year-old boy _ one behind a trash can and the other out in the open. The boy, who lives in a trailer next door, first saw the bodies from his living room window then ventured outside to get a closer look.

Neighbors said they didn't hear any gunshots or noticed a struggle during the night.

''All I heard last night was the dog barking too much,'' said Margarito Castillo of his dog. ''We're used to having the dog bark because there is always strangers walking up and down the street. So we didn't pay much attention to that.''

One woman who lives in the mobile park was so terrified that she refused to give her name. Sitting in a plastic chair holding her six-month-old son, the woman said the community isn't secure, pointing out a missing front door knob on one home.

She just hopes that the suspects are found before anyone else is harmed.

''We're afraid to sleep at night because they might return,'' she said. ''We want justice done. ... We don't want them to think nothing will happen so they return and commit more crimes.''

Damn, Tifton is right down the road from me.  

Some parts of this story sound a bit fishy, I wouldn't be surpised if a Mexican gang did the robbery.

My inlaws live in Moultrie, the blacks are preying on the mexicans and this is a continual problem, not a one time happening. Inlaws called last nite and told us about it. Both want me to give them firearms training.

Quoted: Many immigrants are undocumented and therefore can't open bank accounts, which means they tend to carry a lot of cash or keep it in their homes. They are also afraid to call the police when threatened _ even in these killings, those who found the bodies hesitated to call 911, Gutierrez said.

All the more reason to stop breaking our laws and go home.

You know, it's funny.  Most here, I imagine, would invoke the "survivor" mentality RFN if they found themselves in a situation where they had no money and needed to support their family.  They'd do whatever it took to find work and get their family the help they needed.

Little niceties like borders, laws, and personal comfort and safety would come second to meeting that goal.

Or are you saying you all would just sit  there and watch while your family suffers?

I'm not a fan of illegal immigration, but sometimes you gotta wonder what YOU would do if the SHTF?

I waited until I was well employed, settled and had a good nest egg BEFORE I got married and started a family.

That is what responsible people do.

Irresponsible people spew 10 babies and then wonder, “Gee, what shall I do now? I know, I’ll break the law.”

Fuck ‘em.

DScott, you bring up a good point.  If the SHTF, I would do almost anything to make sure I and mine were taken care of, RFN.  However, I would not have any expectation of people to accept, tolerate, encourage or turn a blind eye to my behavior.  I would do my level best to fly under the radar, not attract attention to myself and behavior while assimilating to the "new" culture I just found myself living in.

Quoted: You know, it's funny.  Most here, I imagine, would invoke the "survivor" mentality RFN if they found themselves in a situation where they had no money and needed to support their family.  They'd do whatever it took to find work and get their family the help they needed. Little niceties like borders, laws, and personal comfort and safety would come second to meeting that goal. Or are you saying you all would just sit  there and watch while your family suffers? I'm not a fan of illegal immigration, but sometimes you gotta wonder what YOU would do if the SHTF?

I'd be locked and loaded and highly on the lookout for illegal immi-holes and the dirtbag scum that supports them.

Quoted: Quoted: You know, it's funny.  Most here, I imagine, would invoke the "survivor" mentality RFN if they found themselves in a situation where they had no money and needed to support their family.  They'd do whatever it took to find work and get their family the help they needed. Little niceties like borders, laws, and personal comfort and safety would come second to meeting that goal. Or are you saying you all would just sit  there and watch while your family suffers? I'm not a fan of illegal immigration, but sometimes you gotta wonder what YOU would do if the SHTF? I'd be locked and loaded and highly on the lookout for illegal immi-holes and the dirtbag scum that supports them.

It's just an accident of birth that separates a lot of "us" from "them".  Ever wonder why your consciousness ended up in your particular corpus, and not some Guatemalen sheepherder?

If it was me, I'd probably make the journey too.  

[flamesuit on]

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: You know, it's funny.  Most here, I imagine, would invoke the "survivor" mentality RFN if they found themselves in a situation where they had no money and needed to support their family.  They'd do whatever it took to find work and get their family the help they needed. Little niceties like borders, laws, and personal comfort and safety would come second to meeting that goal. Or are you saying you all would just sit  there and watch while your family suffers? I'm not a fan of illegal immigration, but sometimes you gotta wonder what YOU would do if the SHTF? I'd be locked and loaded and highly on the lookout for illegal immi-holes and the dirtbag scum that supports them. It's just an accident of birth that separates a lot of "us" from "them".

Nope.  Natioanlity is an accident of birth,.choosing to sneak into another country in violation of federal law is no accident.

Ever wonder why your consciousness ended up in your particular corpus, and not some Guatemalen sheepherder?

.

No.

If it was me, I'd probably make the journey too.   [flamesuit on]

If I had been born in guatamala I wouldnt, I would just be the best damn guatamalan sheep herder I could be. Sucessfull people wil be sucessful no matter where they were born live. Worhtless people wil seek shortcuts like illegal immigration.

Quoted: Five Killed, Six Injured in South Georgia Attacks RUSS BYNUM Associated Press Writer Whittington stressed the attacks appeared to be robberies, not hate crimes.

The two step program for not getting report as a hate crime.
1) Don't be white
2) Steal something

Right down the road.

Tifton has some hispanic gangs, or at least a shitload of hispanic gang graffitti in some neighborhoods. I nearly had a Los Angeles flashback driving through there.

I didn't know there were so many people here so clse to me. I was in Tifton last week.

You should have heard the "debating" going on last night in the office. I still maintain that anything labeled a hate crime is the thought police by another name.

Quoted: Right down the road. Tifton has some hispanic gangs, or at least a shitload of hispanic gang graffitti in some neighborhoods. I nearly had a Los Angeles flashback driving through there.

I wouldn't be surprised if they just blamed it on a couple of black guys, they are much more fearful of the Latin gangs and aren't likely to talk.

Quoted: Quoted: Right down the road. Tifton has some hispanic gangs, or at least a shitload of hispanic gang graffitti in some neighborhoods. I nearly had a Los Angeles flashback driving through there. I wouldn't be surprised if they just blamed it on a couple of black guys, they are much more fearful of the Latin gangs and aren't likely to talk.

I wouldn't blame them, depending on the gang.

Where are you at?

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Right down the road. Tifton has some hispanic gangs, or at least a shitload of hispanic gang graffitti in some neighborhoods. I nearly had a Los Angeles flashback driving through there. I wouldn't be surprised if they just blamed it on a couple of black guys, they are much more fearful of the Latin gangs and aren't likely to talk. I wouldn't blame them, depending on the gang. Where are you at?

I am up in the Bonaire (Warner Robins) area.

......"undocumented migrants" want justice, now let's think about those 4 words......

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: You know, it's funny.  Most here, I imagine, would invoke the "survivor" mentality RFN if they found themselves in a situation where they had no money and needed to support their family.  They'd do whatever it took to find work and get their family the help they needed. Little niceties like borders, laws, and personal comfort and safety would come second to meeting that goal. Or are you saying you all would just sit  there and watch while your family suffers? I'm not a fan of illegal immigration, but sometimes you gotta wonder what YOU would do if the SHTF? I'd be locked and loaded and highly on the lookout for illegal immi-holes and the dirtbag scum that supports them. It's just an accident of birth that separates a lot of "us" from "them". Nope.  Natioanlity is an accident of birth,.choosing to sneak into another country in violation of federal law is no accident. Ever wonder why your consciousness ended up in your particular corpus, and not some Guatemalen sheepherder? . No. If it was me, I'd probably make the journey too.   [flamesuit on] If I had been born in guatamala I wouldnt, I would just be the best damn guatamalan sheep herder I could be. Sucessfull people wil be sucessful no matter where they were born live. Worhtless people wil seek shortcuts like illegal immigration.

How can you be so obtuse?

Quoted: ......"undocumented migrants" want justice, now let's think about those 4 words......

no shit, they're just dripping with irony.

Now that this is in the headlines, The attacks will most likely increase. Imigrants are easier to knock over than a quickie mart. One crackhead says to another, " That's a great idea!"

Quoted: Now that this is in the headlines, The attacks will most likely increase. Imigrants are easier to knock over than a quickie mart. One crackhead says to another, " That's a great idea!"

[Apu]Ah yes, thank very much, come again sir. [/Apu]

Quoted: Quoted: Now that this is in the headlines, The attacks will most likely increase. Imigrants are easier to knock over than a quickie mart. One crackhead says to another, " That's a great idea!" i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/vanilla_gorilla911/images.jpg [Apu]Ah yes, thank very much, come again sir. [/Apu]

VG, that's just wrong, but darn funny.

Here's a little irony for you.  I'm sitting at my hotel bar in El Paso, TX after returning from Ciudad Juarez today, and my wife calls me on my cell and says she thinks she's heard gun shots outside our house.  She's already gone upstairs with the kids and dialed 911.  While I'm on the phone, she gets out her revolver and makes sure its loaded, and she takes the speed loader too.  She calls the police back and they say they've sent several officers to investigate.  After about 40 minutes she decides to get out of the house because she is freaked out.  This is the first time she has "packed," but she has been legal to do so for a couple of years.  As she leaves the neighborhood, she sees the cops talking to an individual of "color."  When she came home 30 minutes later they were still talking to him.  Not sure WTF has happened.  Cops won't tell her what the deal is.  Guess it's time to move.  

Sucks to be me 1500 miles from home, but I'll be there tomorrow if Delta is still in business.