Migrant fatally shot while being detained after escape bid in southern Arizona: CBP

Migrant killed by Arizona Border Patrol agent

PHOENIX - Customs and Border Protection officials say a migrant who died of gunshot wounds after a weekend encounter with a Border Patrol agent was shot while being detained following an escape attempt.

A CBP statement released on Feb. 23 said the migrant was shot after two agents from a horse patrol unit responded around 9 p.m. Saturday to reports of migrants detected in a remote, mountainous area about 30 miles northeast of Douglas, Arizona known as Skeleton Canyon.

As the agents approached, the group scattered but one man was apprehended after a scuffle.

The Cochise County Sheriff’s Office, which is solely conducting the criminal investigation of the fatal shooting, said the man killed was 32-year-old Carmelo Cruz-Marcos from Puebla Mexico.

One agent told authorities that he was struck several times by Cruz-Marcos, who allegedly picked up a large rock and made a motion that he was going to throw it at him.

According to authorities, the agent said he feared for his life and safety and fired his weapon an unknown number of times.

The name of the agent hasn’t been released by the Border Patrol.

Agents called for backup, and another two migrants from the same group were found and detained.

‘Very worrisome’

A month earlier, new CBP Commissioner Chris Magnus was sworn in after a term as police chief in Tucson, where he overhauled the department’s use-of-force policy and pushed for more accountability. Use-of-force issues are among many challenges Magnus faces in his new role.

Ricardo Pineda, who heads Mexico’s consulate in Douglas, confirmed Wednesday it has contacted the family of the deceased, a Mexican citizen, and will help as needed. He said authorities have been asked to conduct an investigation that strictly follows the law.

"This is very worrisome for us," said Pineda. "We are expecting a very thorough investigation on this."

The Pima County Medical Examiner said an autopsy determined the migrant died from multiple gunshot wounds. It said it would have no more information until the final examination report is released.

The CBP said the shooting is under investigation by the Cochise County Sheriff’s Department and the Pima County Medical Examiner’s Office and under review by the CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility.

At the conclusion of a review, the shooting will be assessed by CBP’s National Use of Force Review Board.

Former CBP Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske pushed to change Border Patrol use-of-force policies after taking office in 2014. He made those policies public and required agents to carry and be trained in the use of less-lethal weapons before he retired in early 2017 at the beginning of former President Donald Trump’s administration.

Kerlikowske also instructed the Border Patrol under his watch to put out a statement within four hours and hold a news conference within 24 hours after use-of-force incidents.

Agents have been involved in an increasing number of use-of-force incidents in recent years. During Trump’s final 28 months in office, CBP recorded a monthly average of 50 use-of-force incidents. Under President Joe Biden, incidents increased by 20 to a monthly average of 70.

There also have been more fatalities involving Border Patrol agents, though the number of encounters with migrants has surged at an even higher rate.

Nearly 60 Border Patrol encounters resulted in deaths in 2021, three times as many as in 2019 and four times as many as the decade’s yearly average.