Santos-Diaz

MEMORANDUM **

Maynor Saul Santos-Diaz, a native and citizen of Guatemala, petitions for review of the decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”) affirming an immigration judge’s (“IJ”) denial of his petition for asylum and withholding of deportation. Santos-Diaz challenges the denial of eligibility for asylum.

Santos-Diaz testified about two different series of events that supported his application. The first was his involvement in his uncle’s election campaign and confrontation with people he thought were guerrillas during his return from a political meeting. The men Santos-Diaz took to be guerrillas stopped the truck in which he and two companions were riding. The men killed one companion and wounded another. Santos-Diaz escaped.

The second series of events began the following year, when, according to Santos-Diaz’ testimony, the guerrillas began writing on town walls that they were looking for Santos-Diaz and his brother. He testified that he knew the writing was by guerrillas because he had seen the same type *96 of signs in other cities. The signs said that the guerrillas were looking for petitioner and his brother because they were government informants, and that…