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Mexican suspect in death of U.S. border agent extradited to U.S.

By Ray Downs
Border Patrol Agent Brian A. Terry was shot dead in 2010. A Mexican suspect in his death has been extradited to the United States to face charges, prosecutors said Tuesday. Photo courtesy of U.S. Border Patrol
Border Patrol Agent Brian A. Terry was shot dead in 2010. A Mexican suspect in his death has been extradited to the United States to face charges, prosecutors said Tuesday. Photo courtesy of U.S. Border Patrol

July 31 (UPI) -- A Mexican citizen suspected in the 2010 shooting death of a U.S. Border Patrol agent has been extradited to the United States to face murder charges, federal prosecutors announced Tuesday.

Heraclio Osorio-Arellanes is charged with first-degree murder in the death of U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry. Osorio-Arellanes was arrested in April and extradited to the United States this week.

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Osorio-Arellanes will be arraigned in U.S. District Court in Tucson, Ariz., Wednesday.

Prosecutors said Osorio-Arellanes was part of a human smuggling crew operating in a rural area north of Nogales, Ariz., on the night of Dec. 14, 2010, when they became involved in a gunfight with Border Patrol agents.

In addition to the murder charge for Terry's death, the indictment accuses Osorio-Arellanes of assaulting Border Patrol Agents William Castano, Gabriel Fragoza and Timothy Keller.

Osorio-Arellanes is one of seven people suspected in Terry's death. Of the other six, three have already pleaded guilty and two were convicted following a jury trial.

Manuel Osorio Arellanes pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in 2014 and was sentenced to 30 years. Rosario Burboa Alvarez also pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced to 27 years.

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Lionel Portillo Meza and Ivan Soto Barraza were recently found guilty of first-degree murder and have yet to be sentenced.

Rito Osorio Arellanes, who was not present during the shooting, pleaded guilty in 2013 to conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery and was sentenced to 8 years, the Arizona Daily Star reported.

Another defendant, Jesus Rosario Favela Astorga, was arrested by Mexican authorities in October and is awaiting extradition to the United States.

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