Three men listed as people of “very special interest” were detained on Tuesday night in southern Texas after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent was shot in the abdomen two times during a sanctioned stakeout.
At this time local Hidalgo County Sheriff Lupe Treviño tells The Monitorthat the roles of each person detained could vary greatly. Treviño notes:
“They could be witnesses, could be participants and that’s what we can say at this point. We expect to make an arrest soon and things are developing very quickly.”
Special Agent Kelton Harrison has been listed in stable condition by doctors at McAllen l Center.
Harrison and at least one other agent were recently performing surveillance alongside a brushy area of a highway when they were ambushed.
While no group has claimed responsibility for the attack a sheriff’s deputy was recently attacked by a Mexico Gulf Cartel in the same manner while investigating a kidnapping.
Harrison and his partners were in the middle of investigating a group of human smugglers and drug traffickers.
The shooting of officer Harrison involved two different crimes, according to NBC Affiliate KVEO he was shot outside his home then followed five miles where he was shot a second time along the highway.
The case is currently being investigated by the FBI, ICE and local police.
This is the second ICE agent to be shot since May 10 when a lone gunman shot an off-duty officer in Miami, Florida.
