Posted 9/28/2004 07:24:00 PM by Douglas

What do the Federal Border Patrol Agents do when they find someone trying to swim the Rio Grande to get into Texas? This might be an isolated incident, but sometimes they're placed on prominent display for the faithful in the evidence room.

A life-size fiberglass statue of Jesus Christ found on a sandbar in the Rio Grande sits in the evidence room of the Eagle Pass police station as the faithful flock to it and officials begin contemplating its next stop.

Many in this border town's Catholic community have made the trip to the police department to see the crucified Christ lacking the cross propped against two doors in the entryway of the evidence room.

Well one thing's for sure. The people of Eagle Pass definitely aren't going to overreact and place an undo amount of religious significance on this man-made likeness of the Messiah, are they?

Eagle Pass Police Chief Juan A. Castaneda said newspapers across the border in the Mexican town of Piedras Negras are calling it the Christ for the undocumented.

"Faith has led them to believe that this is a sign," Castaneda said.

"Christ for the Undocumented?" Sometimes a piece of fiberglass is just a piece of fiberglass. But what is the Sheriff going to do with it?

With no leads on where the statue might have come from, the Eagle Pass City Council has begun to consider what to do with it after it's released as surplus property.

The city manager said the department will not sell it, as it traditionally does with unclaimed items. He said the police will donate it to the community.

There's only one place for something this weird: Ebay.