U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on June 22 released body camera footage of the fatal nighttime shooting of Ray Mattia outside his Tohono O’odham Nation home in Arizona on May 18.
Ten Border Patrol agents captured the incident on their body-worn cameras, most of which was withheld from the public by CBP, pending an investigation.
“The footage being released today contains imagery from four of those cameras,” CBP said in a press release.
“CBP’s prompt public release of this footage is in keeping with our commitment to accountability and transparency and in compliance with CBP policy.”
The images show officers with flashlights and weapons drawn approaching a man who throws an object at Border Patrol agents, determined by law enforcement to be a sheathed machete.
When ordered to show his hands, the man abruptly takes his hands out of his pockets. In one hand, he appears to be holding an object.
Border Patrol agents opened fire at that moment, hitting the 58-year-old Mattia multiple times.
One of the agents shouts at Mattia, now flat on his stomach, “Put your hands up so we can help you!”
Footage showed the object lying next to him was a cell phone.
An autopsy by the Pima County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death a homicide, adding Mattia was shot no less than nine times.
Shots fired
According to the CBP statement, the Tohono O’odham Nation Police Department requested Border Patrol assistance in response to a report of shots fired west of the Menagers Dam Village at about 9 p.m., near Mattia’s property.“Agents from the Ajo Border Patrol Station met with the [Tohono O’odham Nation) police officer and followed him to the location on Tohono O’odham National where the shots had been reported,” the CBP report added.
“The police officer and agents encountered an individual outside of a residence who threw an object toward the officers and abruptly extended his right arm away from his body. Three agents fired their service weapons, striking the individual several times.”
Earlier unconfirmed reports by family members stated Mattia had been shot 38 times in an unprovoked incident after calling Border Patrol to report illegal migrants on his property.
The family released a statement shortly after Mattia’s death, claiming Border Patrol used excessive force.
“Raymond called for help and, in turn, was shot down on his doorstep,” the statement read.
“In our eyes and hearts, we believe Raymond was approached with excessive and deadly force that took his life.”
Mattia’s niece, Yvonne Navarez, told The Epoch Times on May 29 that her uncle was a kindly, spiritually oriented man who always fought for the underdog.
The CBP statement said the prompt release of the officers’ body-worn camera footage a month after the incident reflects the agency’s commitment to best practices.
“CBP constantly works to ensure all employees understand and maintain the highest level of professional standards with those they encounter consistent with law enforcement standards of performance and conduct,” the agency wrote.
