Texas National Guardsman Missing in Rio Grande Identified

EAGLE PASS, Texas — As the search for a missing Texas Army National Guard soldier continues for a third day, the Texas Military Department has identified the man in question as Specialist Bishop E. Evans, 22, from Arlington. Evans went missing after entering the Rio Grande early Friday to rescue migrants who appeared to be drowning.

Specialist Evans is a field artilleryman assigned to A Battery, 4-133 Field Artillery Regiment in New Braunfels. He joined the Texas Army National Guard in May 2019. He has been deployed overseas in support of Operation Spartan Shield in Kuwait. During this mobilization, he was regularly assigned operations in Iraq in support of Special Operations Forces.

An extensive search was launched on Friday morning after Evans was reported missing. Search teams from the Texas Army National Guard, Texas Parks and Wildlife, Border Patrol, and other agencies converged along the river. The search continued through Saturday with negative results. Operations resumed early Sunday, with the addition of three airboats from the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Authorities have moved the rally point for search teams and marine vessels to downtown Eagle Pass.

The Texas Rangers, a division of the Texas Highway Patrol, are currently investigating the circumstances surrounding the soldier’s disappearance. Initial information has led them to believe two of the migrants struggling in the current were involved in illicit transnational narcotics trafficking, according to a statement issued by the Texas Military Department. Those migrants are currently being held at a Border Patrol detention facility in Eagle Pass.

SPC Evans was deployed to the border region as part of Operation Lone Star. In March 2021, Governor Greg Abbott initiated the deployment of thousands of Texas National Guard soldiers and airmen plus more than 1,000 Texas Department of Public Safety Troopers.

This is a developing story.

Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol.  Prior to his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on Twitter @RandyClarkBBTX.