A US Border patrol agent was shot in New Mexico on Thursday by a suspect inside a car that officials believe was being used for human smuggling.
The officer, assigned to the Lordsburg station, was shot in the chest around 11:30 a.m. by someone in a vehicle on State Highway 46, US Customs and Border Protection said in a press release.
The agent, who returned fire as the vehicle sped away, was wearing body armor at the time and survived, officials said.
Soon after the shooting, the vehicle rolled over in a crash a few miles up the road, according to CBP.
Six people inside of the vehicle were arrested, including two who were airlifted to a trauma center in El Paso, Texas.
The shooting is being investigated by the FBI, state police and other agencies, officials said.
The shooting happened as thousands of migrants are flooding across the US border from Mexico. AFP via Getty Images
President Joe Biden is scheduled to visit the border in El Paso on Sunday. AFP via Getty Images
President Joe Biden will visit the southern border for the first time in El Paso this Sunday, as thousands of migrants have crossed into the US in record-setting numbers.
There were over nearly 2.4 million border arrests in fiscal year 2022, according to CBP statistics.
President Biden unveiled a new border policy Thursday that will allow in 30,000 migrants a month from Cuba, Nicaragua, Haiti and Venezuela — while also ordering the rapid deportation of those who illegally enter the US from those countries.
CBP agent shot by suspected human smuggler in New Mexico
