Victim: The Border Patrol Agent

On July 23, 2009, Border Patrol Agent Robert Rosas left his young family for work at the Pine Valley Station near Campo California, never to return. At approximately 9:15 p.m., while on patrol a few feet from the Mexican line, he observed a small group of illegal invaders cross over into the United States. Agent Rosas did what he had no doubt done many times before. He dismounted his vehicle and entered the Manzanita and Ribbonwood brush to track down the group, not knowing that they were lying in wait to ambush him.

No one really knows what happened next, but shots were fired, and backup agents responded and found Robert dead or dying in the shadow of a dilapidated border fence. Shot in the head and torso nine times by the criminal aliens, his life was ended in what was later termed a "robbery attempt."

The Mexican government responded quickly, rustling up a cadre of "coyotes," (human traffickers), drug smugglers, and even the supposed weapon, in a desperate attempt to sweep this horrible tragedy under the political rug. It turned out that none of the detained men were involved. Instead, a 17-year-old Mexican national named Christian Daniel Castro Alvarez took the fall and surrendered to U.S. authorities. A federal judge gave him 40 years in jail, which is little comfort to Robert's lovely wife and two small children.

This tragedy underscores the need for a better fence and tighter control over the United States border with Mexico. It also signals an escalation of the violence on this side of the fence (or lack thereof). The area where the agent was killed is still protected by only the decades-old ten-foot fence that smugglers and illegal immigrants have been scaling or crawling under since it was installed. Border agents are no longer taking their safety for granted. Now, the people they are tracking down on these dark, dangerous trails may not be looking for work in El Norte ... but blood.