Reports: Migrant shot at by Indiana National Guard soldier at southern border
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An Indiana National Guard soldier, deployed to the nation’s border in Texas, shot at a migrant who had stabbed two people, according to the cable news network NewsNation.
“The Indiana National Guard is aware of the incident that happened Sunday, April 14,” reads a statement from the National Guard’s media department. “We support and care for our soldiers and airmen supporting Operation Lone Star.”
The Indiana National Guard as well as the U.S. Customs and Border Protection deferred to the Texas Military Department for additional information on the shooting.
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The Texas Military Department confirmed a National Guard service member “discharged a weapon in a border-related incident.” The shooting is under investigation and more info will be released as it becomes available, according to a statement from the Texas Military Department.
The shooting happened along the edge of the Rio Grande on Sunday afternoon in El Paso’s Lower Valley, according to NewsNation.
The Indiana soldier involved was deployed to El Paso as part of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s border security initiative, Operation Lone Star.
Fifty Indiana soldiers were sent to spend 10 months supporting the Texas National Guard at the southern border, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb announced in March.
“Federal negligence enforcing immigration law and the failure to secure our country’s border jeopardizes national and economic security, affecting every state, including Indiana,” Holcomb said at the time.
The governor’s office deferred to the Indiana National Guard for information on the shooting.
NewsNation reported that according to a U.S. Border Patrol bulletin, the soldier saw an individual stabbing a fellow migrant along the river’s edge, which is on U.S. soil. The soldier shot at the person, who fled into Mexico. It is unclear whether they were struck.
An El Paso Fire and Rescue crew responded a short time later and treated two migrants for what they described as “superficial wounds,” which weren’t considered life-threatening, according to the NewsNation article.
Contact Jake Allen at jake.allen@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @Jake_Allen19.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Migrant shot at by Indiana National Guard soldier at southern border
