see also: in December 2008:   CBP Lists Top 10 Enforcement Events of 2008   CBP Seizes $200K in Undeclared Currency; Arrest 1 at Texas Port   Marfa Sector Agents Apprehend Murder Suspect   San Ysidro Port Modernization Deployment Temporarily Reduces Lanes   Border Patrol Agents Assist in Locating Distressed Individual   CBP Officers Stop Man at Michigan Border Crossing Wanted for Aggravated Sexual Assault   Holiday Surprise; CBP Unwraps 312 Pounds of Khat in December ...more on cbp.gov:   CBP News Releases   Press Officers

contacts for this news release

Spokane, Wash. — The Border Patrol’s Spokane Sector is proud to announce that its unique Mustang Unit has been selected to participate in the 2009 Presidential Inaugural Parade on January 20, 2009, in Washington, D.C.

Chosen from amongst hundreds of applicants around the country, the Mustang Unit will be part of a larger Border Patrol contingent including the Border Patrol Color Guard, Bagpipes and Drums, and marching platoon.

The Spokane Sector’s Mustang Unit was formed in the Spring of 2007 when the Spokane Sector began adopting wild horses through the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s Wild Horse and Burro Program to patrol a stretch of border that boasts some of the most rugged and remote terrain in all of North America. With distinctive anatomical features that have enabled their survival for hundreds of years, these true American legends are descendants of animals that were released by or escaped from Spanish explorers, ranchers, miners, the U.S. Cavalry, and American Indians. Through a cooperative agreement between BLM and the Colorado Department of Corrections, the wild horses received personal and extensive training as part of a unique inmate rehabilitative program at the Canon City, Colorado Correctional Institution before they were adopted by the Border Patrol.

Over the past year, the Mustang Unit has participated in the 53rd Annual Chicago’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade as well as the 70th Annual Spokane Lilac Festival’s Armed Forces Torchlight Parade where they received the top award for “Best Specialty Mounted Unit.” Most recently, the Noble Mustangs traveled to Cheyenne, Wyo., for Frontier Days, the world’s largest outdoor rodeo and western celebration, where they captured the “Best Mounted Unit” award.

This initiative, also known as Project Noble Mustang, received the prestigious U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner’s 2008 “Ambassador Award for Intra-Governmental Outreach and Advocacy.”

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.