Man hospitalized after being shot by Border Patrol agent in Arizona; activists make call to action

A man was hospitalized in serious condition on Tuesday after being shot by a Border Patrol agent near the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona.

According to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department (PCSD), the man, who has not been identified, was shot near milepost 15 on West Arivaca Road in southern Pima County around 7:30 a.m.

The shooting unfolded after Border Patrol attempted to conduct a traffic stop, suspecting the man of human trafficking, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said in a news conference on Tuesday afternoon. The man got out of his car and ran away before exchanging fire with an agent.

The man was struck by the agent's fire, the sheriff said, and was transferred to a southern Arizona hospital where he remains in custody. 

The FBI is assisting with the investigation into the shooting, PCSD said in a statement.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) did not respond to a request for comment.

The shooting comes on the heels of a large enforcement operation that took place on Monday across metro Phoenix at 15 locations of Zipps Sports Grill and as Arizona communities brace for increased Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity this year.

A CALÓ News analysis of ICE arrest records, obtained via a FOIA request by the Deportation Data Project, shows over 6,000 arrests in Arizona during the 2025 fiscal year (from Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). 

Amid growing frustration due to increased deadly incidents involving federal agents in other parts of the country, a nationwide general strike is set to take place on Jan. 30.

Following Tuesday morning’s shooting, Arizona activists called on the community to demand justice for the hospitalized person and nine others who have died at the hands of federal agents so far this year.

They include:

• Alex Pretti, shot and killed by a Border Patrol agent in Minneapolis on Jan. 24

• Victor Manuel Diaz, arrested on Jan. 6 in Minneapolis, who died while in custody at the Camp East Montana detention center in Texas on Jan. 14

• Heber Sanchez Dominguez, who died while in custody at the Robert A Deyton Detention Facility in Georgia on Jan. 14

• Parady La, who died at a hospital after being detained at the Federal Detention Center (FDC) in Philadelphia on Jan. 9

• Renee Nicole Good, shot and killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis on Jan. 7

• Luis Beltran Yanez–Cruz, who died at a hospital after being detained at the Imperial Regional Detention Facility in Calexico on Jan. 6

• Luis Gustavo Nunez Caceres, who died at a hospital after being detained at the Joe Corley Processing Center in Texas on Jan. 5

• Geraldo Lunas Campos, who died while in custody at the Camp East Montana detention center in Texas on Jan. 3

• Keith Porter, shot and killed by an off-duty ICE agent in Los Angeles on New Year’s Eve