US Customs and Border Protection on Wednesday released body camera footage of border agents shooting and killing a US citizen near Sasabe in March.
The release of the footage comes at 6:41 PM on March 14, nearly a month after it was shot in southwestern Arizona, north of Sassave. The dead man is suspected of smuggling five illegal immigrants with his BMW.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department is conducting an external criminal investigation into the shooting.
“The loss of a life during an encounter with CBP law enforcement is a disaster for everyone involved, the families of the deceased, the officers and agents on the scene, CBP’s larger workforce, and the communities we serve. will have a significant impact on the world,” the written statement accompanying the video.
Initial report:Border guards shoot man dead after chasing car near Sasabe
of body camera video It shows a border agent driving down a dirt road while chasing a BMW. The agent picked up his truck, put it in the back of his BMW, got out and smashed his window on the rear and front driver’s side with batons.
The agent and the driver wrestle with each other as the driver repeatedly sticks his hand out of the broken window and the agent swings his baton. When the agent tries to grab his left forearm, the driver shifts gears and drives the car backwards.
When the agent tries to grab the driver’s arm, the driver starts going backwards.
As the driver begins to veer sharply to turn the vehicle to the left, the agent pulls out a handgun and fires once at the driver inside the vehicle. The driver immediately falls forward.
No audio was captured for the first two minutes of the video.
After the video was taken, the left rear wheel of the car could be seen spinning, suggesting that the driver’s foot was still on the accelerator. The driver has a black tattooed sleeve on his left forearm and wears a San Francisco 49ers winter cap.
Sound will be played immediately after shooting.
According to CBP, the agent can be seen pointing a gun at another U.S. citizen who was sitting in the passenger seat and got out of the vehicle “just before” the shot was fired. I’m lying on my back and I hear sirens crying behind me.
Passengers claim that they just left the car because BMW didn’t want them to come back. The passenger tells the agent he’s not going anywhere with his hands behind his back.
“(expletive) don’t shoot, (expletive) don’t shoot,” said the passenger, lying on the ground.
The agent tells the passenger not to move while handcuffing him. As he handcuffs the passenger, the agent says, “Oh my god, dude.”
The agents rush to the truck and turn off the sirens.
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The agent pauses at the passenger side door of the BMW, and the driver is seen lying on the passenger side, propped up by his seatbelt.
Two agents attempted to resuscitate the driver and used a defibrillator to help him. The driver was declared dead at the scene by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department.
Two other people can be seen standing behind a car with another agent. As the agent returns to the passenger, he can be heard gasping for air.
“Hey, why?” the agent asks the passenger. “why?”
The passenger tells the agent to open the trunk of the car. There are people there. Two migrants were in the back seat and three were in the trunk, CBP said.
As the agent walks to the trunk of the car, a woman raises her handcuffed hand and says “please” in Spanish.
First BMW found near Sasabe Port
The episode began at 6:18 p.m. when a Border Patrol remote camera operator witnessed suspected illegal immigrants boarding a BMW about a mile north of Sasabe Harbor.
Two border patrol agents began chasing the BMW and noticed that the driver was driving in a “crazy manner.” Agents turned on emergency equipment to enforce a traffic stop, but the driver continued on and the chase continued.
Agents pursued the BMW as the driver turned west on State Route 286 near mile marker 20 and entered Brown Bear Canyon Road. The BMW driver turned south at 3.8 miles west of SR 286 and attempted to turn around at 6:41 PM.
Video footage and other evidence were submitted to the FBI and Pima County Sheriff’s Department hours after the incident occurred, CBP said.
CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility is investigating the shooting. Once the investigation is complete, CBP’s National Use of Force Review Board will review this shooting to determine whether the agent complied with his CBP policy regarding the permissible use of force.
The results of the driver’s autopsy have not yet been released, but the Pima County Coroner’s Office will release the results of its review, CBP said.
Have news tips or story ideas about the border and its communities? Contact our reporters josecastaneda@arizonarepublic.com Or connect with him on Twitter @joseicastaneda.
