Border Patrol involved in fatal shooting near San Luis

Photo by Donna Burton/U.S. Customs and Border Protection: A Border Patrol vehicle by the border wall between San Diego and Tijuana in this 2016 file photo. Agents encountered an armed migrant after being alerted by a camera operator.

Contributed Article/Courtesy U.S. Customs and Border Protection

SAN LUIS – On October 30, 2022, a Border Patrol remote camera operator spotted a group of six suspected undocumented migrants entering the United States approximately 1.8 miles west of the San Luis Port of Entry. The camera operator observed at least one of the migrants armed with a handgun. The camera operator relayed the information via radio to Border Patrol agents assigned to the Border Patrol Tactical Unit working in the area.  

The tactical unit agents encountered the group approximately 300 yards from the U.S./Mexico border at approximately 7:09 p.m. Three agents fired their weapons during the encounter striking and killing one of the subjects, later identified as a male citizen of Mexico, who was armed with a handgun which was found near the decedent. The agents apprehended four individuals from the group and one person fled into Mexico.

The FBI, San Luis Police Department, Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General, and CBP’s OPR responded to the scene. 

This incident is under investigation by the FBI, the San Luis Police Department, DHS OIG, and CBP OPR. This incident will be reviewed by CBP’s National Use of Force Review Board at the conclusion of the investigation. Information about CBP’s NUFRB and procedures for reviewing in-custody deaths can be found here.

This article pertains to an agent-involved shooting that occurred near San Luis, Arizona, on Sunday, Oct. 30, 2022. The information provided is based on a preliminary review by Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Professional Responsibility and may be updated with additional information.