Jan. 27 (UPI) — A suspect was hospitalized in critical condition after exchanging gunfire with Customs and Border Protection personnel on Tuesday morning near the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona, local authorities said.
The individual was driving a pickup truck when federal officers tried to stop it at 7 a.m. MST near the unincorporated community of Arivaca in Arizona’s Pima County.
The unidentified suspect continued driving until exiting the vehicle and running, while shooting at an Air and Marine Operations helicopter and CBP officers, a source told CNN.
The officers returned fire and initiated emergency medical care after wounding the suspect, who was flown by medical helicopter to a local hospital.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos confirmed the CBP officers were involved in the shooting and said the FBI Phoenix-Tucson office and CBP officials are working with the sheriff’s office to investigate the incident.
The circumstances leading to the shooting have not been reported.
Arivaca is located about 10 miles north of the Mexican border and about 70 miles south of Tucson in southwestern Arizona and has a population of 494.
The shooting occurred after three people were shot, including two killed, during federal immigration enforcement efforts in Minneapolis, and another was shot in Portland, Ore., since Jan. 7.
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