An as-yet-unidentified migrant is dead following an incident where a Border Patrol agent attempted to apprehend a group of 20 migrants. The details of the killing have not yet been released.
The Cochise County, Arizona, Sheriff’s Office reported they received information at about 10 a.m. on Saturday morning regarding the death of a migrant near Skeleton Canyon. The incident appears to have involved a Border Patrol agent and a group of migrants, Fox 10 Phoenix reported.
Sheriff Mark Dannels told Breitbart Texas that very little information has been learned at this point. It took two days to process the scene and get the body off the mountain.
“We will begin interviews around the migrant’s death on Wednesday,” Dannels said.
Cochise County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Carol Capas told Fox 10, “Sheriff’s Deputies responded along with Search and Rescue volunteers who discovered that a male subject was deceased on scene. The additional subjects were taken from the area on foot and subsequently transported to a facility for interview purposes and further processing.”
Mexican consulate officials told Tucson.com that five Mexican nationals were arrested in the same incident that led to the death of the migrant. Officials also reportedly notified the Mexican consulate regarding the death.
It is not clear at this time, how many other migrants were involved in the incident.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman John Mennell reportedly told the Associated Press that the migrant was shot by a Border Patrol agent, Tucson.com reported.
Sheriff Dannels emphasized that it is not yet clear if the agent shot the migrant or if he was shot by someone else.
“The smugglers around here are out of control,” the sheriff told Breitbart Texas.
The incident reportedly took place about 30 miles northeast of Douglas, Arizona, in the Peloncillo Mountains.
The Mexican government releases a statement contending, “The government of Mexico rejects any act of unjustified violence against migrants.”
The incident will be investigated by the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office, the Department of Homeland Security, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Dannels said.
Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior news contributor for the Breitbart Texas-Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston’s What’s Your Point? Sunday-morning talk show. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and Facebook.