WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A 27-year-old Michigan man was shot dead by police after opening fire with an assault rifle on a U.S. Border Patrol station in the southern Texas city of McAllen on Monday, local police said.
Ryan Louis Mosqueda attacked the facility shortly after 6 a.m. and U.S. Border Patrol agents returned fire, McAllen Police Chief Victor Rodriguez told reporters.
A McAllen police officer was shot in the knee during the exchange of fire and taken to hospital, Rodriguez said.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said a Border Patrol employee was also injured.
Law enforcement found additional firearms and more ammunition in Mosqueda’s vehicle, Rodriguez added.
“There were many, many, dozens of rounds fired by the suspect towards the building and agents in the building,” he said.
Writing was spray-painted on the side of the vehicle but Rodriguez did not provide details of what it said or whether it gave any indication of the motive for the attack.
Mosqueda is believed to have ties to the area as he was reported missing from a residence in Weslaco, about 18 miles east of McAllen, Rodriguez said, without giving further details.
The FBI is leading the investigation as it involved an attack on federal officers and a federal building, Rodriguez said.
Flights at the nearby McAllen International Airport were delayed for several hours as law enforcement secured the area.
President Donald Trump, a Republican, has made combating illegal immigration a top priority, sending troops to secure the U.S.-Mexico border and launching aggressive raids in U.S. cities.
The actions – supported by Trump’s hardline Republican base – have also led to pushback from Americans concerned about arrests of non-criminals and enforcement tactics that include officers wearing masks to hide their identities.
The number of migrants caught crossing the border illegally has fallen to record lows under Trump, including a new monthly low of about 6,100 in June.
(Reporting by Ted Hesson and Jasper Ward; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Bill Berkrot and Kevin Liffey)
