Man shot, killed in incident with USBP

BY SARAH REYNOLDS, SUN STAFF WRITER
Aug 27, 2006

A U.S. Border Patrol agent shot and killed a man on the Mexico side of the border during an altercation Saturday night near the U.S. Port of Entry at Andrade, Calif., according to the Border Patrol.

Senior Patrol Agent Chris Van Wagenen said the incident occurred when agents attempted to stop and investigate another man driving a vehicle east of the port of entry. The driver, a suspected illegal immigrant, then left the vehicle and attempted to return to Mexico by entering the Alamo Pond, on the Colorado River. Wagenen said the man soon began struggling to stay afloat, and agents came to his aid.

“When he was starting to struggle, the agents threw in a rescue disk, trying to save him," said Van Wagenen. “There were other men, on the fence, and they began to throw rocks at the agents.”

Van Wagenen said it was then that agents came under attack by several individuals throwing rocks on the Mexico side of the border. One agent was struck in the head. When one of the men was observed preparing to throw another rock, an agent fired one round from his gun and struck him.

“The individual who was struck began to run south into Mexico," Van Wagenen said.