Elite Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was shot and killed during a firefight in southern Arizona about 13 miles north of the Mexico/Nogales border late Tuesday night.
The multiple agent and bandit gun battle erupted after Border Patrol agents spotted known-outlaws who have been targeting unsuspecting illegal immigrants passing through a violent smuggling corridor in Arizona, according to National Border Patrol Council President T.J. Bonner. “Our agent was murdered in cold blood by criminals running around out there without impunity.”
“The border is not secure,” Bonner said. “Those who say that it’s secure are either misinformed or they’re being disingenuous. If you have bandits operating that far north into the United States and there’s enough activity to sustain that it tells you there’s a lot of traffic getting by the Border Patrol.”
The shootout claimed the life of Terry and took place in the Peck Canyon region near quiet Rio Rico, Arizona.
Local law enforcement was called to the scene after the shooting ceased and medical assistance was required.
“A little after 11 p.m., we got a call from Border Patrol headquarters requesting backup and emergency medical service. There had been shots fired, and one of their agents had been shot. We did send our deputies up there. We did contact the ambulance service. They did respond to an area known as Peck Canyon. By the time the ambulance personnel got there, the agent had already passed away,” Santa Cruz County Sheriff Tony Estrada told the Arizona Republic.
The murder comes after a tumultuous year for Arizona. The state was sued by the federal government after state lawmakers passed SB1070, a law that would allow local law enforcement to crack down on the increased violence related to illegal immigration that has plagued the state for years.
This latest murder spotlights the nation’s borders and the inability of Department of Homeland Security to secure the 2,000 miles international border and prevent narco-style violence form creeping into the U.S.
“It is a stark reminder of the very real dangers our men and women on the front lines confront everyday as they protect our communities and the American people,” said Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.
Officers on the scene say Terry and the other Border Patrol agents came across a group of five suspected bandits, who didn’t appear to be hauling drugs, but were carrying weapons.