EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — A woman migrant from Ecuador was struck by at least two vehicles and was killed while trying to cross the Border Highway earlier this month, according to Customs and Border Protection.
The incident happened at about 9:30 p.m. on Aug. 17. A supervisory Border Patrol agent, performing patrol duties about a half-mile west of the Bridge of the Americas, saw a man near a concertina wire barricade next to the Rio Grande.
The agent called out to the man, but he ran away into the grass near the river, CBP said.
A few moments later, the agent returned to his vehicle and got out his binoculars. The agent observed another person exit from a nearby canal and run toward a fence by the Border Highway.
The person was later identified as an adult woman citizen of Ecuador.
The agent, speaking in Spanish, ordered her to stop, but she ignored him and climbed over the fence.
The agent saw her run across the eastbound lanes of the Border Highway. When she tried to cross the westbound lanes, she was hit by a car, CBP said.
The agent requested emergency medical services and directed additional Border Patrol agents to respond to the crash scene.
Border Patrol agents arrived at the location where the woman was hit and saw a vehicle approaching her body. A Border Patrol agent attempted to get the driver’s attention by waving his hands, but was unsuccessful, as the driver ran over the body, CBP said.
The driver did not stop and caused significant additional injuries to the woman, CBP said.
The woman was declared dead at the scene.
The El Paso Police Department is investigating the incident, and the CBP Office of Professional Responsibility is reviewing it.
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