MEXICO CITY — Gunmen who shot up an SUV carrying two U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, killing one, knew they were attacking law enforcement officers, according to U.S. officials.
But details of the attack that emerged Wednesday indicate the two agents were not targeted ahead of time but simply stopped in the wrong place at the wrong time in a blue Suburban — a vehicle coveted by drug cartels.
Special Agent Jaime Zapata, 32, died, and a second agent, Victor Avila, was wounded Tuesday when they were attacked after being stopped on a four-lane federal highway in northern Mexico.
Michael McCaul, R-Texas, who was briefed on the incident as chairman of the Homeland Security Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, said the gunmen opened fire after the agents identified themselves as U.S. diplomats.
