A U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) agent died Friday during a crash that ended deep in an embankment off the side of a dirt road in far East County, according to the agency.
Cal Fire said the fatality was reported sometime around 5:30 a.m. in the unincorporated area of Campo, just a few miles from the U.S.-Mexico border. The agent was unresponsive when first responders arrived at the scene, USBP said.
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Aerial footage from SkyRanger 7 showed a heavily damaged border patrol vehicle deep down an embankment. Several U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents were seen down the embankment responding to the scene, while about a dozen first responder vehicles surrounded the area on a dirt road.
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CBP said in a statement the agent was the sole occupant of the vehicle and was on duty at the time of the crash. Authorities did not identify the agent who died and details on what led up to the crash were not immediately clear.
Following the death, a procession was held for the agent while authorities transported the individual's body to the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office.
The case is under investigation by California Highway Patrol and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Professional Responsibility.
