Customs and Border Protection Border Patrol agents often work in remote, desolate areas and often find themselves hours or miles from their closest back-up. Although agents are equipped with modern technology such as communications and tracking devices, they sometimes find themselves unable to communicate because of the demands of the job.

George F. Azrak

Forty years ago, on June 17, 1967, in the early morning hours, Patrol Inspectors, the title in use at that time, Theodore L. Newton and George F. Azrak (trainee), both of Temecula, Calif., were conducting a traffic check operation along Highway 79 near Oak Grove, Calif. when they were ambushed, overtaken, and kidnapped from their remote post. This was a route known to be used by illegal aliens and smugglers of aliens, narcotics, and contraband. After a 48-hour manhunt, Inspectors Newton and Azrak were found brutally murdered in a deserted shack located on the Bailey Ranch off Highway 371 near Anza, Calif., about eight miles northeast of where the officers had been working.

The investigation revealed that Inspectors Newton and Azrak intercepted a vehicle that was transporting more than 800 pounds of marijuana. While they were checking this vehicle, four convicted felons, two of whom had been following the load of marijuana in a second vehicle, overpowered them. The smugglers took the Border Patrol agents to a mountain cabin, handcuffed them together, and stuffed them inside the shelf of an old stove. Then they shot and killed them. Patrol Inspector Newton was shot once in the head, and three shots were fired into Patrol Inspector Azrak: two in the head and one in the chest.

The manhunt for the suspected killers was the largest ever launched in California by law enforcement agencies. The killers were caught and brought to justice in 1967. Since then, each time that one of the killers has become eligible for parole, the extended Border Patrol family, active and retired, has mounted an aggressive letter writing campaign to the California Parole Board demanding the continued incarceration of Inspector Newton and Azrak’s killers.

Theodore L. Newton

The selfless bravery shown by these two heroes in the face of death prompted the inception of the Newton-Azrak Award. This award, named after the patrol inspectors, is a proud and important part of the Border Patrol’s honor and tradition. It is the highest honor that the Border Patrol can bestow on an Agent for acts of bravery or heroism. This annual award recognizes and pays tribute to the sacrifice made by these fine patrol inspectors. Eligibility for the award is based on the following criteria: exercise of unusual courage or bravery in the line of duty and/or a heroic or humane act during times of extreme stress or in an emergency.

The Newton-Azrak Award serves as a reminder for all those that have served and continue to serve, in the CBP Border Patrol, of the dangers and sacrifices demanded of the men and women who protect our Nation’s borders. Some consider the death of Inspectors Newton and Azrak as a defining point in the history of the CBP Border Patrol. Their deaths called attention to the need for increased manpower, rigorous training, and for the most up-to-date technology and infrastructure to support Border Patrol agents. Further, since the deaths of the two patrol inspectors, the CBP Border Patrol requires that a minimum of three to five agents work at each checkpoint along with a back-up unit, regardless of the amount of traffic.

Inspectors Theodore Newton and George Azrak continue to be remembered and honored by the annual presentation of the award that bears their names, the Newton-Azrak Medal for Heroism. In addition, a patrol boat, now retired, also bore their names. Plans are underway to name a new boat, the Newton-Azrak II.

The CBP Border Patrol Museum in El Paso, Tex., has a permanent memorial display in honor of the two men. The museum’s 2007 calendar will commemorate the 40th anniversary of the deaths of Patrol Inspectors Newton and Azrak.