The Mexican gang member accused of killing U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian Terry in 2010, an event that led to the unearthing of the Obama-era Fast and Furious scandal, has pleaded not guilty on the charge of first-degree murder and eight other charges, a Justice Department official confirmed to the Washington Examiner late Wednesday.
Heraclio Osorio-Arellanes appeared in federal court in Tucson, Ariz., Wednesday following his extradition from Mexico Monday.
U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona Judge Eric Markovich ordered Osorio-Arellanes to jail and set the trial start date on Sept. 11.
The suspect, a Mexican national, was taken into custody by Mexican authorities in April 2017 and remained in Mexico for 18 months waiting to be extradited to the U.S. He is one of two remaining cartel members who had been waiting to be extradited to the U.S.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona recused itself in the case and attorneys from the Southern District of California are prosecuting the case in Arizona.
“The Department of Justice is pleased that the suspected killer of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry has been successfully extradited to the United States and will now face justice for this terrible crime,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan also applauded the efforts to seek justice for Terry.
“We never cease in our efforts to bring those involved in Agent Terry’s murder to the U.S. to face charges for their heinous actions,” McAleenan said in a statement. “I am grateful to our partners in the law enforcement community, both here and in Mexico, who joined us in bringing this criminal to face charges in a U.S. court.”
Terry was fatally shot on Dec. 14, 2010, during an encounter with a “rip crew” — a gang that steals from drug and human traffickers — near Nogales, Ariz. Terry and several members of the Border Patrol had approached the group to make arrests, but they fled.
One agent fired nonlethal bean bags at the gang. The crew fired at the agents with their AK-47-type assault rifles, killing Terry.
The death of a Border Patrol agent in the line of duty is rare. Since 1924, a total of 124 agents have died while on the job. The events surrounding Terry’s death led to the public learning the guns the gang members had acquired and used in the shooting had originally been purchased from the U.S. government.
Fast and Furious, the name of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives operation, was rolled out in hopes the Obama administration could track who purchased guns and how they were distributed.
Six men, including Osorio-Arellanes, were charged on various counts in the case, including first-degree murder, second-degree murder, conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, attempted interference with commerce by robbery, use and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence, and assault on a federal officer.
The indictment alleges the suspects also assaulted Border Patrol agents William Castano, Gabriel Fragoza, and Timothy Keller that night in 2010.
Three have been convicted on individual charges. In October 2015, a Tucson jury found Jesus Leonel Sanchez-Meza and Ivan Soto-Barraza guilty of murder and other charges. Manual Osorio-Arellanes pleaded guilty to murder. He was sentenced in 2014 to 30 years in prison.
The fifth suspect, Rosario Burboa-Alvarez, was not physically present at the shooting, but pleaded guilty to murder in connection to having put together the gang and operation that night.
The sixth person, Jesus Rosario Favela-Astorga, is in Mexican custody waiting to be extradited to the U.S.
“To anyone who would take the life of an American citizen, in particular an American law enforcement officer, this action sends a clear message: Working closely with our international partners, we will hunt you down, we will find you, and we will bring you to justice,” Sessions added.
Terry had been a member of the Border Patrol Tactical Unit and had entered the patrol in July 2007. He was also a Marine and former police officer in Michigan.
The Justice Department said the FBI, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, DEA, and DOJ Office of International Affairs worked together to apprehend and prosecute the fifth suspect.
