Rosas murder investigation continues

<figure id="attachment_1094" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1094" style="width: 144px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a class="highslide" onclick="return vz.expand(this)" href="/sites/default/files/2009/07/CON-ARMA-DE-FUEGO.JPG"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-1094 " title="CON ARMA DE FUEGO" src="http://laprensa-sandiego.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/CON-ARMA-DE-FUE…; alt="Ernesto Parra Valenzuela a.k.a. El Neto" width="144" height="240"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-1094" class="wp-caption-text">Ernesto Parra Valenzuela a.k.a. El Neto</figcaption></figure>
 Border Patrol agent Robert Rosas was just 30 years old. A husband and father of two small children, he was assigned to patrol the Campo area near the border with Tecate Mexico, where he died last Thursday July 23rd, from a gunshot wound.
 His murder was followed by a massive man-hunt lead by authorities from both sides of the border. Just two hours later, a man was arrested on the Mexican side. He has been formally charged with Rosas murder and faces charges of illegal use of a firearm and being a member of an organized crime organization.
 The suspect is 36 year-old Ernesto Parra Valenzuela, a.k.a. El Neto, who was carrying a .92 Pietro Beretta.9mm black handgun. The gun is being tested to find out if in fact it was used in Rosas murder.
 The Federal Bureau of Investigations, FBI, has taken over the case in the United States and has offered a $100 thousand dollar reward for the capture of Rosas murderer.
 FBI spokesperson, special agent Darell Foxworth has stated that despite the quick arrest by Mexican authorities, the FBI does not consider the suspect to be clearly responsible, have not formally charged anyone, and are continuing their own investigation.
 On Friday the 24th, local authorities arrested Salvador Picasso-Ambriz who is a patient at O’Connor Hospital in San José, California. He was later given over to FBI, but Foxworth has not confirmed that such arrest is related to the Rosas case.
 On Saturday July 25th, four men were arrested in Tecate in an unrelated case, accused of being people traffickers and responsible of a series of gang-rapes and two recent murders in the same area where the agent’s murder was committed.
 Two of the men are brothers: 43 year-old José Evodio and 49 year-old José Eugenio Quintero, both born in Tamazula, Durango. The other two suspects are Antonio Balladares Zepeda, 57 and José Alfredo Camacho Peñuela, 31.
 According to authorities, during his confession, José  Eugenio Quintero identified Parra Valenzuela as the man responsible for Rosas murder.
 The deserted mountainous area where the Rosas murder took place has been getting more problematic in the ferocious intent to cross people and drugs, has been the setting of a series of violent confrontations between drug traffickers, people smugglers and authorities from Mexico and the United States.
 The latest serious confrontation was July 17th, just a few days before Rosas was murdered.
 In the same area, local, state and federal authorities in Mexico were called by the Border Patrol agents, who informed them of a group of men who had cut out 11 feet of fence, making what it seemed like a makeshift garage door for a car to go in and out at ease.
  The new “Access” was quickly used by a dark gray Dodge Dakota 2001 pick up.
 The Border Patrol agents reported the case to Mexican authorities adding their belief that the car had around 3 or 4 passengers and was filled with drugs. When the federal agents tried to stop the car, they were almost run over so the agents fired their guns as the pick up was driven back into Mexican territory.
 Hours later, Mexican authorities found the vehicle, with no drugs or suspects, showing just how vulnerable the border area really is, and how imperative it is for the region to have better coordination when it comes to police work.
 Rosas funeral will be held on Friday July 31th at Southwest High School, followed by funeral which will be held at Evergreen Cemetery, both in El Centro.
 A memorial account has been established for Rosas’ wife and two young children at Cabrillo Credit Union, 10075 Account Number: 186716-02.Carroll Canyon Road, Suite 120, San Diego, CA 92131.

Author

Mariana Martinez