| Last night, we brought you coverage from the latest hearings on Immigration, where officer Inez Casanova finally gave the Senate Select Committee a positive identification on who this "Mr. Middleton" is. As you saw, he's Barton Middleton, and though very little is known about him, he's quickly gaining infamy due to the testimonies of persons who have gone before the Senate Committee. They have heard startling accounts that he was handsomely paid to act as an immigration agent, so that he could push through 6 visa applications for Chinese nationals.
It all sounds dubious, and he is being linked to corruption and theft within the Immigration Department, but the person who gave him a face in these senate hearings is Officer Cassanova. We showed you how the Senate was skeptical of the answers she was giving them on Barton Middleton. Tonight, we have a little more on that testimony where the Senators kept challenging Casanova that she knows more about Middleton than she wants to publicly admit. Here's that back and forth:
Hon. Mark Lizarraga
"Your testimony has changed, do you realize that from what you said earlier?"
Inez Casanova - Immigration Officer
"In what way?"
Hon. Mark Lizarraga
"In that this morning you said they came to you asking you for a Mr. Middleton and you called first the Mr. Middleton who was an ex immigration officer. You did not get him. Subsequent to that you called the second Mr. Middleton, which turns out to be Barton. That's what your testimony said earlier this morning. If you like to see or hear the transcript, we can do that. Is that what you recollect that you said this morning? Perhaps you want to speak to your counsel."
Inez Casanova - Immigration Officer
"When they came they asked me for a Barton Middleton. Then I called, yes I did called the brother just to make sure if he was - I mean he works with me. He didn't answer the phone. Then I call Barton and Barton came."
Hon. Mark Lizarraga
"You did not give them the name Barton, because in their testimony to this committee they said they were looking for a Mr. Middleton. We didn't know who this Mr. Middleton was. Everybody is looking for this elusive Mr. Middleton and I thank you very much for finally confirming and identifying Mr. Middleton for us today, but they did not know, according to their testimony who Mr. Middleton was. So did you give them the name Mr. Barton Middleton?"
Inez Casanova - Immigration Officer
"Yes sir I did."
Hon. Mark Lizarraga
"You gave them the name Barton Middleton. So you are changing your testimony again, because earlier you said that they came to you asking you for Mr. Barton Middleton."
Inez Casanova - Immigration Officer
"I call his brother, it wasn't his brother and...."
Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"I don't believe that, but let's move on."
Inez Casanova - Immigration Officer
"Then I call Barton Middleton and it's not strange that I call Barton Middleton to come."
Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"And what is more from the documents that we have, Mr. Middleton then discloses to the immigration officers where he got the visas from. That's just luck that you knew who to call and the person who came spilled the beans? Luck, chance?"
Inez Casanova - Immigration Officer
"It's not luck sir."
Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Then what is it, we are trying to get at?"
Inez Casanova - Immigration Officer
"I don't know."
Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Or you don't want to say?"
Inez Casanova - Immigration Officer
"I don't know."
Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"I have to say to you Miss Casanova that you have left a very uneasy feeling. I don't think you are being frank with us. I think you know more and stress to you that we have no evidence so far that you were involved. It is simply that you are here to assist us."
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