Minuteman is dismissed for aiding an immigrant

A Minuteman Project volunteer who apparently flaunted his sighting of a suspected undocumented immigrant on camera has been dismissed from the monthlong civilian effort to patrol a section of the southeastern Arizona border.

Bryan Barton of San Diego apparently thought the man was in distress from lack of fluids and food when he gave him a bowl of cereal and milk, according to a minuteman statement.

He also held up a T-shirt to commemorate the event and gave the man $20 before a Border Patrol agent arrived to take the suspect into custody.

Attempts to reach Barton Friday were unsuccessful. Barton had earlier told reporters that if he saw an undocumented immigrant, he'd give him his shirt.

The Wednesday event was caught on videotape, and Border Patrol spokeswoman Andrea Zortman said after interviews by the Cochise County Sheriff's Department and Mexican Consulate, Barton was cleared of any wrongdoing. The suspected undocumented immigrant remained in custody Friday, Barton said.

A Minuteman Project statement said the rules for volunteers strictly prohibit interaction with "suspected aliens."

"The volunteer's actions were admirable, justified and undeniably humane, but unfortunately they jeopardized our established procedures and overall purpose of passively monitoring the border," said co-founder Chris Simcox in the statement.