CBP officer indicted, accused of using excessive force at Bridge of the Americas

Aaron Martinez, El Paso Times
·2 min read
7

Editor's note: This report was updated to reflect Miguel Delgado Jr.'s employment status.

A U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer was indicted on three federal charges after being accused of using excessive force against two victims in unrelated incidents at the Bridge of the Americas port of entry.

Miguel Delgado Jr. was indicted by a federal grand jury March 8 on two counts of deprivation of rights under color of law and one count of falsification of a document in a federal investigation, U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas officials said.

The indictment was unsealed by a judge Monday, officials said.

CBP officials said Delgado is currently a CBP employee. He has been with the agency since May 2007.

More:Former ICE officer sentenced to 8 months in prison in bribery case

Delgado is accused of using excessive force during two separate incidents while he was on duty at the Bridge of the Americas port of entry in South-Central El Paso. The first incident happened Oct. 20, 2019, while the second incident happened June 15, 2020, the federal indictment states.

Both victims "suffered bodily injury as a result of Delgado’s unlawful use of force," officials said.

The indictment alleges Delgado assaulted the victims and willfully deprived the victims of their constitutional right "to be free from unreasonable seizures, which includes the right to be free from the use of unreasonable force by a law enforcement officer."

The victims are only identified as R.E. and T.E.E. in the indictment.

Delgado also is accused of making false statements in a report about one of the incidents with the intent to obstruct the investigation into the incident, officials said.

More:‘If you help me, I’ll help you’: Texas man accused of trying to bribe El Paso HSI agent

Delgado submitted false information in a U.S. Customs and Border Protection Incident Log Report for the June 15, 2020, case, the indictment states.

The alleged false information included Delgado claiming that he “turned (the victim) around while sitting in the chair in order to place (the victim) in hand restraints” and that the victim “kept trying to push back and push” Delgado “off of (the victim's) back,” the indictment states.

A warrant was issued for Delgado's arrest March 9, federal court records show.

He was arrested and booked Friday into the El Paso County Jail. A bond is not listed in jail records.

Delgado faces up to 10 years in prison for each count of deprivation of rights under color of law and up to 20 years in prison over the falsification of a document in a federal investigation, officials said.

Aaron Martinez may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com or on Twitter @AMartinezEPT.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso CBP officer indicted on excessive force charges