FBI investigates border shooting near Peace Arch crossing in Blaine, Wash.

A person was shot and injured after U.S. Border Patrol agents opened fire near the Peace Arch crossing in Blaine, Washington. The FBI is leading the criminal investigation.

Border Patrol agent shoots individual near Peace Arch crossing in Blaine

The FBI is investigating a shooting involving U.S. Border Patrol agents near the Canada-U.S. border crossing in Blaine, Washington, vancouver.citynews.ca reports. The incident took place Tuesday morning at the corner of 4th Street and A Street, approximately 100 metres from the Peace Arch border crossing, just south of South Surrey, B.C.

"No agents were reported injured," FBI spokesperson Amy Alexander said in an emailed statement. "The subject was injured and transported to the hospital." A firearm was recovered at the scene, Alexander added, though she did not specify how it was connected to the incident.

"This was an isolated incident, and there is no danger to the public," Alexander said. "The facts of the incident are actively being investigated by the FBI, and no other details are available at this time."

U.S. Customs and Border Protection commissioner Rodney Scott confirmed that an agent discharged his service weapon during an encounter with an individual near the border. The agency's office of professional responsibility is reviewing the officer's use of force, while the FBI leads the criminal investigation, Scott said.

The Blaine Police Department, which directed all media inquiries to the FBI, asked for public patience while investigators processed the scene. "There is no threat to the public," the department said in a brief social media statement.

Len Saunders, a U.S. immigration lawyer who has lived in Blaine for 25 years, said the shooting occurred at around 5:30 a.m. and drew a "massive law enforcement" response to a wooded area along the border known as a smuggling hotspot.

"There is lots of people who they catch, who usually sneak in through the park or sneak in through the bushes," Saunders said. "But it's very rare that you actually hear that someone is shot for an action like this."

The Canada Border Services Agency declined to comment, directing all inquiries to U.S. authorities.

Source: Google News CA — Crime (EN)