Shocking body cam footage captures deadly footage between Border Patrol and tribal member in Arizona

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released the body camera footage of agents involved in the fatal shooting of a member of the Tohono O’odham Nation in Southern Arizona, shedding light on the incident. 

On May 18, Raymont Mattia, 58, was two feet away from his front door when he was shot approximately 38 times by agents from the Ajo Border Patrol Station at around 10 p.m. inside the reservation, according to a report. 

Before the shooting, Mattia had called Border Patrol because there were “multiple illegal immigrants who had trespassed into his yard and he wanted assistance getting them out of his property," they told Tucson Tv Station KVOA.

The body camera footage of three Border Patrol agents who opened fire and at least seven others who responded to the scene were released on Thursday. The edited video shows Mattia throwing a sheathed machete at the foot of a tribal officer and holding out his arm. Mattia is then shot and falls to the ground. 

“He’s still got a gun in his hand,” says one of the agents. 

The footage shows several agents handcuffing Mattia and asking if they had seen the gun. However, no gun was found. 

On Friday, the Pima County Medical Examiner released its autopsy report, which revealed that Mattia had received nine gunshot wounds. Additionally, Mattia had a high blood alcohol level and drugs in his system during the encounter. 

The FBI and Tohono O’odham Nation are investigating the shooting but have yet to release any findings. 

Last month, the Department of Homeland Security announced plans to enforce a department-wide policy requiring agents to wear body cameras when interacting with the public. So far, the CBP has issued about 7,000 body cameras to agency workplaces.