04/12/11— Mexican authorities released a statement stating that they had arrested a man on Monday wanted for the slaying of Border Patrol (BP) agent, Robert Rosas, in July 2009. The suspected killer has been identified as Marcos Manuel Rodriguez Perez, also known under his alias as “El Virus.” He was arrested Monday night in Tijuana after coordinated intelligence between American and Mexican authorities helped lead them to his whereabouts. Rodriguez is one of the three men suspected of killing Agent Rosas. Another suspect, Christian Daniel Castro Alvaraz, 17, had previously turned himself in to Tijuana police and was sentenced to 40 years in prison last year.
Castro Alvaraz stated that the group originally planned to rob Agent Rosas of the night-vision gear and other equipment from his vehicle, while trying to cross into the United States. Agent Rosas had been working as a Border Patrol Agent for three years and was tracking suspected undocumented immigrants on the border near Campo. According to a Border Patrol spokesperson, the migrants Rosas was following split up, at which point he pursued them on his own. The other Border Patrol agents lost sight of him and later found his body on Shockey Truck Trail. Rosas was shot four times, once in the neck and three times in the torso.
Sources:
Stickney, J. “New Arrest in Border Agent Slaying.” NBC San Diego. April 12, 2011.
