AP source: Authorities believe border agent may have fallen

DALLAS (AP) — Investigators believe a border patrol agent who died in West Texas after suffering extensive injuries to his head and body may have fallen down a 14-foot (4-meter) culvert, and his partner, who radioed for help, has no memory of what happened, according to a U.S. official with knowledge of the investigation.

FBI spokeswoman Jeanette Harper said in a statement Monday that both agents were found late Saturday night in a culvert near Van Horn and that both had traumatic head injuries. Harper said Rogelio Martinez died early Sunday. The FBI is leading the investigation and results of his autopsy are pending.

Another U.S. official, who was briefed on the investigation but is not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Monday that Martinez was found at the bottom of the culvert and that investigators believe he may have fallen. The official said it happened after dark in an area that’s known for drug activity and where agents often look for drugs in culverts.

Authorities haven’t offered an official explanation of what happened to Martinez and his partner, and a border patrol supervisor said reports that the agents were attacked are “speculation.”

Several elected officials, including President Donald Trump, have called Martinez’s death an attack. Rush Carter, a supervisor for the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol region that includes the area where Martinez died, said all the agency can confirm is that the two “were injured while performing their regular duties.”

“We are waiting for the investigation to fully determine how those injuries happened,” Carter said Monday night.

Harper told the San Antonio Express-News on Sunday that Martinez and his partner were “not fired upon,” but she didn’t elaborate.

CBP issued a statement Sunday that was thin on details, saying the two agents “were responding to activity” near Interstate 10 and close to Van Horn, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) from the border with Mexico and 110 miles (175 kilometers) southeast of El Paso. A CBP spokesman said Martinez and his partner were taken to a hospital, where Martinez died. Martinez’s partner, whose name hasn’t been released, was in serious condition.