Political leaders speak out against killing of Border Patrol agent
Political leaders spoke out after a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent was fatally injured responding to activity in the Big Bend Sector near I-10 and Van Horn Sunday morning.
In a tweet, President Trump wrote “Border Patrol Officer killed at Southern Border, another badly hurt. We will seek out and bring to justice those responsible. We will, and must, build the Wall!”
Gov. Greg Abbott, Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Will Hurd all tweeted condolences. Rep. Beto O’Rourke also tweeted a message of sympathy, adding that “We will pursue investigation & justice.”
Agent Rogelio Martinez, 36, and his partner were transported to a local hospital, where Martinez died. Martinez’s partner is in serious condition. His name wasn’t released.
Martinez had been a border agent since August, 2013 and was from El Paso.
Conservative news outlet Breitbart reported that Border Patrol Agent, and National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd stated, “What we know is that Border Patrol Agent Rogilio Martinez appears to have been ambushed by a group of illegal aliens whom he was tracking,” Judd said.
“Our agents’ reports from the ground say that he was struck in the head multiple times with a rock or rocks.”
At this time the agency is not saying how the agents were injured or what their injuries are.
The Border Patrol’s Special Operations Group and agents from CBP’s Air and Marine Operations are searching the area for potential suspects or witnesses.
The Culberson County Sheriff’s Department, FBI, Office of Inspector General, and CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility are assisting in the investigation.
Border Patrol records show that Big Bend accounted for about 1 percent of the more than 61,000 apprehensions its agents made along the Southwest border between October 2016 and May 2017.
The Big Bend Sector, formerly known as the Marfa Sector, is 165,154 sq. miles composed of 77 Texas counties and all of the State of Oklahoma, and includes 510 miles of river front along the Rio Grande River, which is nearly a quarter of the U.S.-Mexico border, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The Border Patrol website lists 38 agents who have died since late 2003, some attacked while working along the border, and other fatalities in traffic accidents. It lists one other agent death in the line of duty this year.
